Patrick Nagel (1945 - 1984)
Patrick Nagel was born in Dayton, Ohio, but was brought up in the Los Angeles
area, where he spent most of his life. He studied art at Chouinard Art
Institute, and in 1969 received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from California
State University at Fullerton.
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Patrick Nagel.... |
Nagel first put his talents to work as a freelance artist; then in 1971, he
joined ABC-TV where he produced television graphics for promotion and news
broadcasts. After a year, he returned to freelance assignments, accepting
commissions from major corporations and magazines, including IBM, ITT, United
Artists, MGM, Universal Studios, Playboy, Architectural Digest, Rolling Stone,
Oui, and Harpers.
Beginning in 1976, Nagel began contributing regularly to Playboy, which
extended the exposure and popularity of "the Nagel Woman" to a huge
and loyal audience. In 1978, he created his first poster image for Mirage
Editions. He also painted the cover of rock group Duran Duran's Rio album, which
became the number one album in the world.
The feeling of Nagel's work is reminiscent of Japanese woodblock prints as
well as of Art Deco styling, yet it is completely contemporary and universal in
appeal. Starting from a photograph, he would create a simplified drawing, the
translate the drawing to a painting -- always "simplifying, working to get
more across with fewer elements," note Elena Millie. Bold, dark lines shape
perspective out of flat, cool colours and stark white spaces; the result is what
some have described as "fantasy realism."
During his lifetime, Nagel's work was exhibited in several one-man shows; his
first exhibition of painting sold out within fifteen minutes. His posters have
been collected by such prestigious institutions as the Library of Congress, the
Oakland Museum, and the Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts at U.C.L.A.
Permanent collections of his work are housed at the Bibliotheque des Arts
Decoratifs, paris, and the Smithsonian Institution. Among the awards Nagel
received were recognition by Communication
Arts, Art Direction, and Graphis.
Patrick Nagel died of a heart attack in 1984 at the age of 38, but his art
lives on.
Biography borrowed from the Patrick Nagel website. |