These illustrations of people in various states of peril were painted by the extremely prolific Italian artist Walter Molino. Most of these pieces date from the 1950s.
Much of Molino’s work was produced for the Italian newspaper La Domenica del Corriere.
Born in 1915, Molino began his work as a professional illustrator in 1935. He started out working as a comic artist for satirical magazines until he became the official cover-illustrator of La Domenica del Corriere in 1941. It has been said that famous fantasy illustrator Frank Frazetta was a huge fan of Molino and drew inspiration from his work.
These paintings take on an almost sadistic quality, as Molino seems to revel in the beauty of human bodies being tossed about by dire circumstances. The mayhem is delightful.
There are many more examples of Molino’s incredible work on the “Today’s Inspiration Group” Facebook page.
Lots more, after the jump…...