Playboy ‘Ancient Evenings Queen’ 1983

Don Ivan Punchatz created this painting, Playboy ‘Ancient Evenings Queen,’ using acrylics, a distinctly modern material, on illustration board. The textures achieved here are especially notable. Look closely, and you'll see how the paint is applied in layers, building up depth and luminosity. This is particularly evident in the rendering of the figures, where the artist’s skilled handling of acrylics brings a near-sculptural quality to the forms. Punchatz was working in the world of commercial illustration, where speed and efficiency are valued, so his choice of acrylics allowed him to achieve rich effects in a relatively short amount of time. The image appropriates an ancient aesthetic for contemporary consumption, a telling commentary on our ongoing fascination with antiquity and its intersection with modern media. Appreciating the labor and skill evident in the work encourages us to reconsider the value and artistic merit of illustration, often deemed separate from fine art.