MATT BAKER PULP ART

Largely as a result of the institution of the Comics Code Authority in October 1954, during the latter part of his career, Matt Baker turned to illustrating magazines and other printed materials outside the comics industry. One wide-open market was the men's adventure and pulp magazines that proliferated during the 1950's into the 1970's. His work can be found in titles like COURAGE (see below), GUSTO MEN'S ADVENTURE MAGAZINE and MANHUNT.

Matt Baker art from GUSTO #2, December 1957.

Magazine illustration allowed Baker to experiment with different techniques as seen in the image below, where he used ink and gray-tone gouache, a popular medium for magazine illustrators during this period. While it can't be confirmed in the illos below, he often collaborated with artist Frank Giusto, who worked primarily for Ace Magazines on titles such as THE HAND OF FATE, BAFFLING MYSTERIES and GLAMOROUS ROMANCES. Giusto emulated Baker's style and signed his work as "Ace Baker", which many comics historians long thought was a Matt Baker pseudonym. See examples of his work HERE.

COURAGE #1 (Arnold Magazines, November 1957)

BONUS!

This is an authorized preview of TwoMorrow's 192-page book, MATT BAKER: THE ART OF GLAMOUR. The first edition hardcover is long sold out, but a digital-only edition is available HERE. My highest recommendation.

From the publisher:

In the early 1940s, Matt Baker became of one the earliest African-American comic book artists. But it wasn’t the color of his skin which made him such a significant figure in the history of the medium—it was his innate ability to draw gorgeous, exciting women and handsome, dynamic men in a fluid, graceful style. Imagine Dave Stevens or Adam Hughes working in the ’40s, drawing a new story every month, and you’ll have a good idea of Matt Baker’s place in the industry throughout his career. Yet few of today’s comic book fans know of the artist or his work, because he died in 1959 at the young age of 38, just as the Silver Age of Comics was blossoming and bringing in a new generation of readers. Matt Baker: The Art of Glamour (192-page hardcover with 96 pages of full-color), edited by Jim Amash and Eric Nolen-Weathington, presents an impressive career cut tragically short. It features a wealth of essays; interviews with Baker’s friends, family, and co-workers; and a treasure trove of his finest artwork, including several complete stories, at last giving the wonderfully talented artist his full due. (NOTE: Contains mild nudity, to present a representative sample of his career. MATURE READERS ONLY.)

EXTRA!

Toward the end of the 1950's men's taste in glamour and pinup photography started to change and they began to prefer the more dangerous to the demure. This article, written by the Chief Psychologist of the Raleigh, North Carolina State Hospital appeared to have some insight on the matter. Just a few years later, anyone picking up a men's magazine would see how just how quickly those tastes evolved.