Nose art on an A-2

[airfrogusmc]

Heres a photo of my buddy Jeromes RMNZ Monarch with a new painting that he just finished. He's got some talent.

 

[shamus]

Very nice!

Is there any pics of the front?

Who made the jacket?

What group is the back from?

 

[airfrogusmc]

Hi Shamus,

Its a Real McCoys New Zealand and thats the only photo I have of it.
I beleive it was the 401st Bomber Group

 

[airfrogusmc]

Heres a link to some of his other jackets
http://www.picturetrail.com/jrome

 

[Wild Root]

Great jacket! Very well painted Vargas!

Root.

 

[shamus]

Very nice work.

I'd be too nervous to paint on the back of my jacket. I had enough trouble sewing on a patch!

On a side note, my old graphic's lady's uncle use to paint jackets and nose art during WWII. She said she had some of his old brushes, but alas no photos of his work, but I'm sure if you knew he did them, there are photos.

 

[MudInYerEye]

Jerome's work is a real pleasure to look at. I have a B-10 I'd really like painted.
Do you know what kind of rates he charges?

Check out this Japanese cat's work, he's pretty good too:

http://translate.google.com/transla...l&prev=/search?q=c-king.jp&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8

 

[airfrogusmc]

To me Jerome has a real feel for the forties style. Its that intangable thing. In my opinion he really captures the feel and spirit of the originals. I don't know what he charges. I would contact him thru his site. Besides being very gifted hes a great guy and a new dad on top'a that.

 

[Wild Root]

I can really tell that he has the feel of the 40’s! The lettering and bombs are just perfect! The pin up is superb and very well done. Only a few guys had jackets that nice in the 40’s! Not every artist who painted jackets did that well. I have seen lots that looked rather crude. I have seen some that look like they could have had great detail but after so many years they just are not what they used to be. Paint on leather doesn’t last forever.

But, that’s one of the best I have seen. Maybe I should start to do this kind of stuff. There is money in it.

Root.

 

[MudInYerEye]

Wow. Those tooled leather patches on Jerome's site are something else. The 416th night fighter squadron is amazing. Good show!

 

[airfrogusmc]

Yeah the guy a real artist.

 

[PADDY]

Jerome is in a class all of his own!

I saw the pics on VLJ-III Allen and they are just the 'dog's b*llocks!' that wee man from Michigan knows how to recreate a piece of 40s AAF history on a piece of hide! thanks for sharing that, I'm sure for many here who are not familiar with Jerome's work, they will be blown away by that link you provided!

 

[airfrogusmc]

Thanks Paddy, and as good as the stuff looks online you should see it in person. That Zemkes Wolfpack jackets is just incredible.

 

[grant]

Jerome painted the Hell's Angel Vargas girl on the back of my B-10 and really did an incredible job. He is a true master of the pinup. Fifty years ago he'd a been cranking em out for Esquire.

Grant

 

[airfrogusmc]

Grant Great looking jacket!!!!!

 

[MudInYerEye]

I've never had a jacket painted, but I'm itching to, and I'm curious how well they generally hold up with regular wear. Of course I've seen originals and the results vary widely. Does the consistency of modern paint used on jackets differ from that of the 1940's. Also, would the paint on cloth jackets like B-10s or B-15s maintain their image longer than that on an A-2? Does anyone out there have photos of their painted jacket a year or two down the road?
Thanks in advance if you do.

 

[feltfan]

Happy Bottom?

Check out this Japanese cat's work, he's pretty good too:

http://translate.google.com/transla...l&prev=/search?q=c-king.jp&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8

Nice stuff all around.

I suspect the Japanese artist had the wool pulled over
his eyes on this one, though:

http://www.c-king.jp/54.html

Don't ask.
I guess I'd never wear a painted leather jacket (well, maybe
there's an exception somewhere) but I do like seeing them.

 

[jake431]

Nice stuff all around.

I suspect the Japanese artist had the wool pulled over
his eyes on this one, though:

http://www.c-king.jp/54.html

Don't ask.
I guess I'd never wear a painted leather jacket (well, maybe
there's an exception somewhere) but I do like seeing them.

I myself am toying with Jerome painting up my A-2 to represent my Grandfather's service record, but other than that, I don't think I'd wear a painted one. But who knows what the future holds?

-Jake

 

[MudInYerEye]

Regarding "Happy Bottom"

feltfan: "I suspect the Japanese artist had the wool pulled over
his eyes on this one, though." Remember what Felix Unger said about assuming things...
Actually Happy Bottom was a real plane. In fact, the plane was christened by Edward G. Robinson who named it after his wife Gladys.