Lot 136: CRAFT, KINUKO YAMABE. BORN 1940. Egg tempera over watercolor on board, Se

CRAFT, KINUKO YAMABE. BORN 1940. Egg tempera over watercolor on board, See why she’s smiling, parody of the Mona Lisa for IBM advertising campaign, 1993, 260 x 302 mm, signed with monogram on the lower left corner of the IBM catalog, matted and framed. A witty parody of the Mona Lisa, probably the most famous painting in Western Civilization, reading the IBM product catalog. Lintas Advertising published it widely in print ads in many national magazines in 1993 and 1994. Born in Japan and a graduate of of the Kanazawa College of Art (Kanazawa Bijutsu Kogei Daigaku), Kinuko Y. Craft has become one of the most versatile commercial artists in America since her arrival in 1964. She has done much advertising and editorial work as well as designed greeting cards, calendars, posters and many book jackets. She is especially celebrated for her exquisite children’s books. After receiving several gold and silver medals from the Society of Illustrators in New York, she became a member of their Hall of Fame in 2008. Kinuko Craft is a Renaissance woman, wrote Ray Bradbury. By this I mean not that she paints like the Renaissance painters, but that she is an artist for all seasons, for all kinds of subjects, and in all kinds of styles.