Sophie Wratzfeld in Conversation with Jacqueline Pollen
The Fraulein Trap, Stag Magazine, 1966.
Dramatic compositions, rousing narratives and beautiful women – between the early 50s and late 70s, the market for Men’s Adventure Magazines (MAM) was flourishing. The industry required artists to be creative at the drop of a hat and to work under pressure and time constraints.
Samson Pollen (1931 – 2018) was a master of this genre and one of the top commercial illustrators of his time. By immersing himself in stories and their characters he created dark scenes that are often juxtaposed with his sense of humour. The thrill of his illustrations met both publishers’ and readers’ expectations. During Samson’s career, he produced over 500 paintings, the majority of which were published in various Men’s Adventure Magazines by Martin Goodman’s Magazine Management Company. Since commercial art was not considered fine art in the mid-twentieth century, its artistic quality has not been properly highlighted until now. The current solo exhibition at Daniel Cooney Fine Art, New York, is about to change that.
MADE IN BED’s Sophie Wratzfeld interviews Samson’s wife , Jacqueline Pollen, on her husband's artistic practice, her involvement in his work as a model, as well as his current show.
Samson and Jacqueline Pollen
Sophie Wratzfeld: Samson Pollen’s current solo exhibition “Action” at the Daniel Cooney Fine Art features never-before-exhibited paintings by the artist, some of which have been stored in his archive for decades. How did the exhibition come about?
Jacqueline Pollen: I was put in touch with Daniel Cooney Gallery and had a conversation with [Daniel]. He came over and took a look at some of my husband’s illustrations. He took some of the ones that he thought would be interesting to show at the exhibition, had them framed and now they’re up on the wall. He was very interested in the action, the depth and just the excitement of [Samson’s] paintings that have a vibrant touch with people’s psyche.
SW: The images in the exhibition were all created for various men's adventure magazines. How can the demand for that content between the 50s and 70s be explained from a social perspective?
JP: I think it started in World War II, when men were very lonesome and wanted to read about action and see women, of course. They loved ‘pin-ups’, which were very popular back then.
In those days, hand-drawn magazines were more appreciated. They had spots where illustrators would have drawn every single page – it was real artwork. People used to sit around and just look at these pages. Now, [magazines are] all photography and graphics – manipulation by machines.
SW: Part of Samson’s preparation for his paintings included searching for reference photographs - could you tell me a bit more about that process?
JP: [Samson] would use reference materials from his files to create the backgrounds and costumes. His files, as a matter of fact, are better than some libraries: [they include] horses, dogs, boats, ships, people. He had a filing system that was incredible. He would put massive amounts of reference materials in his filing cabinets. It was like the picture library in New York.
[The publishers] would give him an idea of the storyline by saying something like “There is a man and a woman, and they’re lost on the ocean, now give me something.” [Samson] would have to conjure up these images, which was not always easy. Sometimes they asked for it overnight, so we would work through the night to develop a concept. You sit there and think “How am I going to make this exciting?” but he was able to produce every time.
We're Trapped in an H-Bomb Fall Out Zone, Stag Magazine, 1974.
SW: What was it like for you to model for your husband? Did you also develop ideas for the composition of the paintings? What role did you take in the creative process?
JP: [Modelling] was very exciting, I loved it. He would, for example, tell me “I want you to show me what it’s like to be afraid.” I posed for a series on the Civil War and had to play the part of a man - I had a rifle and had to lay on the floor like I was being shot. He did a painting called The Battle of the White House and had me pose in 20-30 different positions. He would draw beards on the men, but that was all me posing. I also posed for a gothic-themed painting where I ran out of a castle with very beautiful gargoyles and these big [door] knockers - just unbelievable.
Woman Running out of a Castle, 1978.
I like to draw, myself - not like him, my artworks are totally different. My husband used oil and acrylic, [whereas] I use rolling and coloured pens and make my own frames. My husband said to me “One of these days, you have to go down to the village in Soho - your stuff would really sell in the galleries.” I felt so honoured that he would say something like that to me. He really liked my work, but I can’t compete with his mastery. That takes a lot of years and a lot of schooling.
Jacqueline Pollen, Fine Feathered Friends, 2017.
SW: Many of the women in the illustrations take a strong, active role within the plot and demonstrate confidence in their bodies and their sexuality. What were the reactions to this progressive way of depicting women?
JP: I think that depicting women in a progressive way was acceptable - they were coming into their own and I think that secretly women were stronger than they portrayed themselves [to be.] Case in point, when you look at the Honeymooners (a famous sitcom from the 1950s), you’ll see that Ralph Kramden had a big mouth and was ramping and raving but [his wife, Alice Kramden] ruled the rust, she was in charge. Even back then in the 50s and 60s, women were pretty strong; they ruled the household. I like looking at those illustrations because I would like to be that strong, pull out a gun and help my man. Also, if you remember all the James Bond movies, those women were never helpless they were all strong. I think that’s what people wanted to see.
Revenge of the Sewer Rat, Stag Magazine, 1972.
SW: Martin Goodman’s Magazine Management Company challenged artists to deliver an illustration within a few days. The artists were only given a 1-3 sentence description of the scene they should depict. What was it like for Samson to produce a painting under such time pressure and with such limited information about the storyline?
JP: It was second nature for him; he thrived on that. When he needed to have something finished within a certain period of time, he would work night and day on it until he was done. That’s how he was, very responsible. He wanted to give them the best job he was capable of. He would have loved to be able to develop some of the pieces a bit more but the time frame on these things was “Get it out there right away!”
My husband went into this field working [as a] freelancer. He didn’t care for a rigid kind of situation, where you go to an office, sit at a desk and are told what to do every minute of the day. He liked to be on his own, he was his own man. I think I would have a problem working at home on my own, but he never had a problem – this is what he loved to do.
I think it helped his career tremendously that he was self-motivated, tenacious, forceful, strong and had full self-confidence and joy doing [his illustrations]. And I think it came through, it really did.
SW: On the one hand, Samson’s work required him to immerse himself in the story and its characters and express his own ideas. On the other hand, he had to satisfy readers by entertaining them with lurid and permissive images. How did he balance artistic expression with meeting commercial demands?
JP: I think he had an instinct for it. To be a successful illustrator is to understand what’s being asked of you and produce it just the way that [the magazine company] envisioned it. Not every painting came out the way they wanted it to but for the most part, my husband had a strong sense, understood what these people wanted and gave it to them. That’s why he was able to be in the business for 50, 60 years.
There was one publisher, who was very difficult. He’d say: “I like it, it’s beautiful but change the colour, make it this colour or that colour.” That’s just about the only criticism that he ever got, nothing in the form or the composition. [Samson] had a great eye and a great ability for composition.
SW: Martin Goodman’s MAMs depicted various themes, from tales of adventure and violent confrontations to rescue missions and erotica. Did Samson Pollen have a favourite genre or a piece of work that he was particularly fond of?
JP: He liked the adventure series because they gave him the ability to really let loose with his imagination. “The Westside Story” was his favourite; he did that when he was 20 as a sample. Unfortunately, that painting was stolen from the studio; we never knew what happened to it. He relished that painting because he spent [lots of] time on that sample so that it would bring him work. He showed that piece to the art director and they said: “You’re hired, we love it.”
The Westside Story, 1951.
In the current exhibition, the [painting] that my husband liked the most, was I Killed for the Mafia where the guy was getting shot as he was exiting the bordello – that [piece] sold right away.
I Killed for the Mafia, Stag Magazine, 1969
SW: How does it make you feel that your husband’s illustrations are now accessible to a wider audience due to the publication of the books Pollen’s Women and Pollen’s Action as well as the solo exhibition at Daniel Cooney Fine Art?
JP: It’s all very exciting and I think it’s long overdue. Unfortunately, through his lifetime it didn’t occur, but he did get to see the second book (Pollen’s Women: The Art of Samson Pollen, 2018) published. Finally, an illustrator of his calibre is [known] out there. Samson Pollen is going to be known because he is a very rare illustrator who was able to capture life as it is in such depth and quality.
SW: What is going to happen with the remaining paintings in the archive? Can you imagine showing more of them publicly or is there a third book planned?
JP: Of course [I could imagine showing more of them publicly] - I have almost two hundred in my apartment. The master bedroom was turned into a studio and [we keep] all those paintings there. I love when people come over – now of course, because of COVID-19, no one comes over. When I have company, the first thing people say is “Can we see the paintings please?” Anytime anybody wants to see them, I love showing them. I’m so proud.
As a matter of fact, the publishers who did the first two books are working on another two books and maybe more. He has a lot of work that hasn’t been shown yet. It’s all very exciting!
Thank you, Jacqueline.
Imagery courtesy of Jacqueline Pollen and Daniel Cooney Fine Art.
Visit Daniel Cooney Fine Art’s website to find out more about Samson Pollen’s solo exhibition “Action,” on view from January 9 - February 27, 2021.
Sophie Wratzfeld,
Assistant Interviews Editor, MADE IN BED