Apropos Dick Dubois, the subject of my previous, surprisingly popular, post, I received an email from Ken Furtado who is writing a book about George Quaintance, the famed 50s physique artist. According to Ken, Dick Dubois was Quaintance’s last model before the artist’s untimely death. Dick was posing for a painting entitled “Odin Welcoming the Slain Heroes into Valhalla,” which graced the cover of Physique Pictorial in Fall 1958. (below).

Gazing at the image, one can easily recognize Dick’s bulging physique in Odin, and the hint of a sly smile. The helmet throws one off a bit because it covers up Dick’s signature bouffant hair-do. I have no idea who modeled for the two “slain heroes.” The one on the left seems to have lost his loincloth in battle. One can only imagine what this must have looked like full-size and in color. Here are some other Physique Pictorial images he did, as well as a few samplings of other paintings which show the range of his high camp style. You can get a full-run of all the Physique Pictorial issues in a three-volume set published by Taschen.

And a page that shows George Quaintance at work.

Below is a painting of Steve Reeves by Quaintance in which the future Hercules is done-up as a Greek God with thunderbolts. I own a large “glicee” print of this that I bought from Dan Lurie, the bodybuilder, who knew Steve Reeves well.

Furtado’s email reminded me however of how much I love and admire the work of George Quaintance. I can’t explain why this amazing artist isn’t better known! His kitsch work for Physique Pictorial alone should guarantee him a place in the pantheon of Homeros.

And an email from my friend Reed Massengill further reminded me that I had taken some snapshots of work that Quaintance had done in his hometown near Stanley in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. Before making his mark in New York and California, Quaintance honed his craft by painting murals, paintings, and occasionally even decorating furniture for family and friends. One of his most remarkable pieces is a mural he did for a church showing John the Baptist anointing Christ and his acolytes. Here are a few of the pictures I took several years ago when I toured the church with John Waybright, a friend of Quaintance’s family and co-author with Ken Furtado of the book on him. You can learn more about their project by visiting their website: Quaintance

Below is a snapshot I took of the mural showing Christ being anointed by John the Baptist:

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And a detail of his face and halo.

And a closer look at one of the supplicants reveals that George Quaintance may have used himself as the model.

And another shot showing some more details of the witnesses. Quaintance was just beginning his career when he painted these figures. But you can already see his flair for composition and his eye for beautiful models.

It’s a stunning mural and even more surprising considering its location in a church and the fact that it was painted sometime in the 30s. The fact that it has stayed there, in pretty good condition, all these years is a testament to the high regard his fellow Virginians have for the inimitable and unforgettable George Quaintance.