Friday, October 7, 2011

Unusual Artist’s Names

In this age of googling artist names, it's a real advantage to have an unique name. But it's hard to beat some of the really cool and memorable artists' names in history.

First off, there's the great Disney animator T. Hee. 


And here's a portrait of Illarion Pryanishnikov.

And let's not forget Hercules Brabazon Brabazon.

Would you like to nominate some artists for the most interesting or unusual names? Out of your suggestions in the comments, I’ll pick my top ten favorites, and then we’ll put it to a poll.

Wikipedia on T.  (Thornton) Hee
at

42 comments:

  1. Zac ElletsonOctober 7, 2011 at 11:05 AM

    Solomon J. Solomon

    ReplyDelete
  2. Richard J. Luschek IIOctober 7, 2011 at 11:19 AM

    I have always loved the name of the sculptor Sir Hamo Thornycroft.

    Dagnan Bouveret is a great artist with a great name. It sort of sounds like a Yosemite Sam curse word.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Andrew SoneaOctober 7, 2011 at 11:43 AM

    Leon Belly

    ReplyDelete
  4. Super VillainOctober 7, 2011 at 11:44 AM

    bev dolittle, awesome wildlife artist
    basil gogos, awesome monster movie artist
    al jaffee, mad magaizine artist

    but my new favorite name comes from NBA basketball player Lloyd Bernard Free, who just changed his name legally to World B. Free, yikes!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Super VillainOctober 7, 2011 at 12:21 PM

    Edvard Munch

    ReplyDelete
  6. SankamOctober 7, 2011 at 1:04 PM

    Odd Nerdrum. (Pronounced 'Ood' I am told)

    ReplyDelete
  7. StacyOctober 7, 2011 at 1:08 PM

    James Toogood - excellent watercolor painter, as his name suggests. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  8. r8rOctober 7, 2011 at 1:19 PM

    how about George Of, the American modernist painter usually classed with the Fauves? His name gets lost next to the entries on 'George of the Jungle', but he was quite a fine artist.

    ReplyDelete
  9. DarrenOctober 7, 2011 at 1:29 PM

    Ignaz Gaugengigl

    ReplyDelete
  10. Melinda9October 7, 2011 at 1:33 PM

    Augustus Egg.

    ReplyDelete
  11. ScorchfieldOctober 7, 2011 at 1:58 PM

    Giovanni Battista Piranesi

    ReplyDelete
  12. SmurfswackerOctober 7, 2011 at 2:15 PM

    I go for Australian painter Rupert Bunny. And I cast a second vote for Augustus Leopold Egg.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Annick HuberOctober 7, 2011 at 3:04 PM

    The french painter Enguerrand Quarton.
    (Carton = Cardboard in french. I always found it hilarious.)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Eugene ArenhausOctober 7, 2011 at 3:33 PM

    Me! :D

    ReplyDelete
  15. Kelly ToonOctober 7, 2011 at 4:20 PM

    Well, I'm a cartoonist/caricaturist/illustrator, and I married a guy named Toon. So, my name is Kelly Toon.

    www.kellytoon.com

    ReplyDelete
  16. kevinwparkerOctober 7, 2011 at 4:50 PM

    Not an artist, but I thought I'd mention that in my career as a computer programmer I once had a colleague named I. Oh.

    ReplyDelete
  17. gary amaroOctober 7, 2011 at 5:23 PM

    Tibor Gergely

    ReplyDelete
  18. UnknownOctober 7, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    I feel the need to change my name to something way more exciting.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Andrew BonneauOctober 7, 2011 at 6:20 PM

    Geertgen tot Sint Jans- Netherlandish painter c1465- c1495

    ReplyDelete
  20. Clark NovaOctober 7, 2011 at 6:29 PM

    Don't forget the great Ub Iwerks!

    ReplyDelete
  21. nuumOctober 7, 2011 at 6:32 PM

    Alfonso Azpiri
    Frank Frazetta
    Ernest Chiriaka
    Dice Tsutsumi
    Glenn Vilppu
    Friz Freleng
    Ivor Hele
    Karl Gnass
    John Lagatta
    Petar Meseldzija
    Peter de Seve
    Rik Maki
    Rien Poortvliet
    Tyrus Wong
    Uwe Heidschoetter
    Victor Ambrus
    Wouter Tulp

    ReplyDelete
  22. NickOctober 7, 2011 at 6:37 PM

    Man Ray! Sounds like a super hero.

    ReplyDelete
  23. PoseAmationOctober 7, 2011 at 9:08 PM

    The most unusual artist name I ever heard was ManWoman. His son is named Ivan the Cat. Here is his website: http://www.manwoman.net/

    ReplyDelete
  24. nuumOctober 7, 2011 at 9:39 PM

    Akseli Gallen-Kallela

    Finnish painter.

    ReplyDelete
  25. KessieOctober 7, 2011 at 11:07 PM

    Holling Clancy Holling, writer and illustrator of books like Paddle-to-the-sea.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Izak van LangeveldeOctober 8, 2011 at 12:36 AM

    I remember an illustrator named Gurney...

    ReplyDelete
  27. nuumOctober 8, 2011 at 12:37 AM

    Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso

    Pablo Picasso

    ReplyDelete
  28. PyracanthaOctober 8, 2011 at 1:34 AM

    Rembrandt Peale
    Washington Allston

    ReplyDelete
  29. ArnaudOctober 8, 2011 at 4:37 AM

    Well, what about James Gurney?
    Sorry, James :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. JohanOctober 8, 2011 at 4:51 AM

    Frans Hals
    (litterarily translated, it would be "Frans Neck").
    The man was anything but a redneck :D

    ReplyDelete
  31. MichaelOctober 8, 2011 at 8:46 AM

    Half Man, Half Biscuit is my favorite name for a band.

    ReplyDelete
  32. My Pen NameOctober 8, 2011 at 9:31 AM

    I painted apartments in college. One day a guy named Bob Painter (i have changed his first name but his real last name was painter) walked in.

    we only paid 10.00 an hour and he said 'i'm worth more than that' ..
    We'll see, my boss said.
    In short this guy was SO into being a 'professional painter' (like house painter" he wouldn't use our brushes.. even though our were better and his were awful.. and the sad thing? he.. well, how do I put it.. he sucked.. we ended up firing him.

    I felt bad for the guy even though he was kind of a jerk.. he was SO serious about it and he awful.


    A little off topic, but a few years ago the vicor of a church in london where beatrix potter lived noticed some odd names in the graveyard: Peter Rabit, Jeremy Fisher, and so forth :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. My Pen NameOctober 8, 2011 at 9:39 AM

    Ps didn't many artists take or were given unusual names.. for example Doménikos Theotokópoulos was a bit TOO unusual for the spainish so they just said "el greco, Fra Angelico was certainly not born with that name...

    ReplyDelete
  34. LarryOctober 8, 2011 at 9:52 AM

    Jean Kellogg

    Kellogg -This is an English occupational name for a pork butcher, deriving from the Medieval English "kellen" meaning "to kill" or "to slaughter" and "hog" - a "hog" or "pig"

    William Bliss Baker

    Baker - meaning, uh, baker

    Howard Chandler Christie

    Chandler - The French word chandelier refers to a person who makes candles, a candlestick maker.

    ReplyDelete
  35. AnonymousOctober 8, 2011 at 12:09 PM

    I will say that once people know you having an unusual name is good. Until they can remember it... well, I often get - "I lost your business card and couldn't remember your name comments... I just knew it was long and began with a 'G'". Which is a rather unfortunate place for a freelancer to be. But yes, unusual names are fun

    ~Laura Garabedian

    ReplyDelete
  36. Howard LyonOctober 8, 2011 at 3:45 PM

    How about Slartibartfast. He specialized in fjords and won an award for Norway. :)

    I have always thought Bouguereau was unusual, especially since I have heard it mispronounced Booger-row several times.

    ReplyDelete
  37. AaronOctober 9, 2011 at 3:32 PM

    Newell Convers Wyeth

    ReplyDelete
  38. David TeterOctober 9, 2011 at 3:58 PM

    Following the links on your most recent post 'Bladesmith' for 'Baby Tattooville...2010' via Hi-Fructose, I noticed Bob Dob, whose work BTW is fantastic, the name fits.
    I wonder if his full name is Robert Dobert?

    ReplyDelete
  39. TimOctober 10, 2011 at 2:31 AM

    Cy Twombly!

    ReplyDelete
  40. David StillOctober 10, 2011 at 3:09 AM

    I second Dagnan-Bouveret, but in the spirit of this discussion, I feel we need his full name:

    Pascal-Adolphe-Jean Dagnan-Bouveret

    Some other cool names:
    Philip Alexius de László
    Peder Severin Krøyer
    And just because man, those French really like to put a lot of names on their babies don't they:
    Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecomte du Nouy

    ReplyDelete
  41. guodaOctober 12, 2011 at 5:39 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  42. D AldanaOctober 21, 2011 at 12:32 AM

    Fra Filippo Lippi

    ReplyDelete

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