1959 Nude Pencil Drawing by Gene Szafran

A 1959 nude pencil drawing by the American artist Gene Szafran (1941-2011). This stylized portrait depicts a seated female figure with short dark hair. Reddish-brown hues accentuate the drawing adding subtle dimension. Signed and dated to the bottom right, the drawing is displayed in a wooden frame and a cream mat.

Born in Detroit, Szafran studied at the Art School of the Society of Arts and Crafts in Detroit. He later went on to teach there as well as at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Szafran worked as an illustrator for major publications such as McCalls, Cosmopolitan, Playboy, Bantam Books, and others. In 1970, he started illustrating the covers of science fiction books, which is what he is most well known for.