Oops, easy mistake to make. Charles Binger signs his paintings with his last name – Binger. This illustration is by Milton Charles, who also signs his work with his last name. Binger and Charles both did covers for the Fawcett Group in the ’50s and ’60s.
I’ve been looking into this because I’m interested in learning more about Milton Charles. This is in fact Charles Binger’s work. He signed ‘Binger’ until the mid-’50s and then switched to ‘Charles’ (exactly as shown on the cover above) around the time his style became a little more graphic. Milton Charles signed his work, which is done in a sort of ‘naive’ non-realistic style, with simple block lettering. So… long story short, you were right at the start: this is Binger’s work.
Again, I must disagree. There is a HUGE problem with ascribing that signature to Charles Binger. I don’t see that I can post a picture here in the comments section, but I do have a digital image of a painting signed with exactly the “Charles” signature noted above. This painting was signed and dated ‘8911’. Charles Binger passed away in 1974. He was not around to have used that signature in 1989. Milton Charles passed away in 2002. Milton Charles was a longtime art director for the Pocket Group and prior to that had produced some of the cover illustrations for them as well as for the Fawcett Group. By the way, I am fortunate enough to have an original Charles Binger in my personal collection. It dates to 1959 and carries the traditional “Binger” signature.
Oh, and I should also point out that I have a digital image of a 1962 cover Mr. Binger did for Avon (“Crusade”). This illustration is signed “Chas Binger” and the “Cha” in “Chas” bears no resemblance whatsoever to the “Cha” portion of “Charles” in the example above.
See, the problem with those two web photos is that these are circuitous arguments. How was the identity of those two paintings as Charles Binger made in the first place? I argue they are incorrect. Show me a book cover illustration with that signature that is credited to Charles Binger by the publisher. Or an original illustration with that signature that has Charles Binger’s contact information on the back. I believe the evidence I’ve presented shows pretty conclusively that the artist using the drawn-out “Charles” signature *cannot* be Charles Binger.
Among the examples of paintings from the show is one large framed piece that clearly shows his “Charles” signature. Hopefully you don’t think a gallery of La Luz de Jesus’ stature, showing “the first exhibition of [Binger’s] work in 45 years , and the very first time that these works have been offered for sale” incorrectly attributed a Milton Charles painting to Charles Binger.
I’ve created a small album on Flickr of paperback cover art by Milton Charles, including a biography provided by his son, Robert. Hopefully this will offer further confirmation that, based on the consistent style shown, it would be highly unlikely that Milton Charles ever worked in (or was even capable of) a style similar to Binger’s. https://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/albums/72157709896315057
Oh, here we are! I had lost track of this thread. I now concur the “Charles” signature is NOT that of Milton Charles, and almost certainly IS that of Charles Binger. I’m still a little troubled by the inconsistencies I note above, but now believe those inconsistencies have rational explanations.
Oops, easy mistake to make. Charles Binger signs his paintings with his last name – Binger. This illustration is by Milton Charles, who also signs his work with his last name. Binger and Charles both did covers for the Fawcett Group in the ’50s and ’60s.
Thank you! Tag updated.
I’ve been looking into this because I’m interested in learning more about Milton Charles. This is in fact Charles Binger’s work. He signed ‘Binger’ until the mid-’50s and then switched to ‘Charles’ (exactly as shown on the cover above) around the time his style became a little more graphic. Milton Charles signed his work, which is done in a sort of ‘naive’ non-realistic style, with simple block lettering. So… long story short, you were right at the start: this is Binger’s work.
Again, I must disagree. There is a HUGE problem with ascribing that signature to Charles Binger. I don’t see that I can post a picture here in the comments section, but I do have a digital image of a painting signed with exactly the “Charles” signature noted above. This painting was signed and dated ‘8911’. Charles Binger passed away in 1974. He was not around to have used that signature in 1989. Milton Charles passed away in 2002. Milton Charles was a longtime art director for the Pocket Group and prior to that had produced some of the cover illustrations for them as well as for the Fawcett Group. By the way, I am fortunate enough to have an original Charles Binger in my personal collection. It dates to 1959 and carries the traditional “Binger” signature.
You can see the identical “Charles” signature on a Binger piece at this blog address: https://muscleheaded.wordpress.com/2018/09/23/vintage-pin-up-charles-binger-3/
Oh, and I should also point out that I have a digital image of a 1962 cover Mr. Binger did for Avon (“Crusade”). This illustration is signed “Chas Binger” and the “Cha” in “Chas” bears no resemblance whatsoever to the “Cha” portion of “Charles” in the example above.
Here is another on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/47888952@N02/10320972104/
See, the problem with those two web photos is that these are circuitous arguments. How was the identity of those two paintings as Charles Binger made in the first place? I argue they are incorrect. Show me a book cover illustration with that signature that is credited to Charles Binger by the publisher. Or an original illustration with that signature that has Charles Binger’s contact information on the back. I believe the evidence I’ve presented shows pretty conclusively that the artist using the drawn-out “Charles” signature *cannot* be Charles Binger.
Please visit this gallery website and scroll down to their Charles Binger exhibition description.
https://laluzdejesus.com/steven-daily-howard-hallis-charles-binger-tammi-otis/
Among the examples of paintings from the show is one large framed piece that clearly shows his “Charles” signature. Hopefully you don’t think a gallery of La Luz de Jesus’ stature, showing “the first exhibition of [Binger’s] work in 45 years , and the very first time that these works have been offered for sale” incorrectly attributed a Milton Charles painting to Charles Binger.
I’ve created a small album on Flickr of paperback cover art by Milton Charles, including a biography provided by his son, Robert. Hopefully this will offer further confirmation that, based on the consistent style shown, it would be highly unlikely that Milton Charles ever worked in (or was even capable of) a style similar to Binger’s.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/leifpeng/albums/72157709896315057
Oh, here we are! I had lost track of this thread. I now concur the “Charles” signature is NOT that of Milton Charles, and almost certainly IS that of Charles Binger. I’m still a little troubled by the inconsistencies I note above, but now believe those inconsistencies have rational explanations.