The collections of Harold von Schmidt (above), Ed Vebell, Dean Cornwell, and Howard Pyle were (or in Vebell's case, are) legendary. There were also rental agencies who served illustrators for both props and costumes.
Today, most of the business for prop rentals comes from movie producers. This video (direct link) takes us behind the scenes to one of the largest movie prop rental companies in Los Angeles, called The Hand Prop Room.
Today some of the leading art schools are assembling working collections of props, costumes, and natural history specimens that art students can borrow. This is one of the ways that traditional brick-and-mortar art schools can keep their edge against upstart online art schools.
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The Hand Prop Room
35 years after I started an Illustration career, I am busy trying to shake the notion that saving everything and every picture is a great idea. Sometimes I think the main difference between a hoarder and an illustrator is "shelving and ordering."
ReplyDeleteGreat post Jim, Thanks! Yes, Ed Vebell's collection was astounding! Your post is very pertinent to my own illustration career since after forty years, I'm now de-accessing my collection of costumes, militaria, uniforms and odds and ends. Maybe some are ending up at prop houses? - Cort Skinner
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeleteNow the next time somebody says my place looks like a used furniture store, I can tell them Props!
David I know how you feel.
ReplyDeleteI have loads of old calendars I can't bare to throw away since I use these as reference. I also have a few scrap books with pic references I collected before I had internet access. I still add to that collection now and again. I have an odds and ends box and other stuff on shelves and in drawers. I try to keep all of that hidden behind closed doors so to speak. I also take my own pic references via camera. I love collecting the stuff that appeals to me in the name of art but the other side of me hates having too much garbage and clutter. But in the end lucky for me its all in the downstairs studio.
BTW in my old calendar collection I have an Dinotopia themed one. ;)
ReplyDeleteI use to admire that one when it was selling in the mall for Christmas for a few years.
Still one of my favorites and the one that got me in to the stuff.
No way! I'm a hoarder too :( I went to Terpning's exhibit at the Autry a while ago and it was amazing just how much actual Native American regalia he had and how they would reoccur or be used in different paintings. I also met two of his models for paintings. I learned a LOT from his process in his video at the exhibit...it was so humbling the way he would do an entire drawing, do several studies and spend a lot of time on his painting. It makes me wonder as a student what the rush is. One artist this past weekend, whenever he rushes, says "that's the illustrator side of me" (as opposed to fine artist side)
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