LEROY NEIMAN'S FEMLIN

The Femlins are not only original drawings by Neiman, they are a great example of 20th-century Americana; they symbolize the Playboy aesthetic of the 1960s and 70s and are icons of popular culture. In the early 1950's, just before Playboy magazine was conceived, LeRoy Neiman and Hugh Hefner worked together at the Chicago department store Carson Pirie Scott. 

When Hefner had the idea to start his men's magazine, he asked Neiman to do the original artwork, and the "Femlin" was born! Neiman envisioned her as being 12" tall, so in most of the illustrations she's in that scale. She's depicted as being mischievous, and as her name suggests, she's a female gremlin. Starting in 1957, every issue of Playboy had two black and white Femlins; she was usually on the jokes page behind the centerfold. Amazingly, Neiman contributed two Femlins drawings for every monthly issue, for 50 years.The illustrations were created as "camera-ready" line-art, to be photographed and then reduced for inclusion in Playboy Magazine.

These are fascinating, unique pieces of 20th-century art and culture and are available only through our galleries because of the 40-year long friendship between Franklin Bowles and LeRoy Neiman.

SELECTED FEMLIN ORIGINALS

Please contact the gallery for more information