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A framed lithograph by the master of pop pin-up art, Mel Ramos, American (1935 - ). This piece is entitled “Fraulein French Fries” and was printed in 2002 in an edition of 499.

Mel Ramos was born in 1935 at Sacramento, California. Between 1954 and 1958 he studied at the Sacramento City College, the San José State College and the Sacramento State College, finishing with an M.A. From 1958, he taught at various institutions including Elk Grove High School, Mira Lama High School and California State College. Between 1962 and 1963 he began a series of garishly colored super-heroes taken from comic strips using a thick oleaginous pigment. In 1963, he was first included in a collective exhibition in Pop Goes the East at the Contemporary Art Museum, Houston.

The popularity of his works is evident in the fact that since 1959 he has participated in more than 120 group shows. He has enjoyed great success and critical acclaim as an adventuresome artist with the creativity and sense of humor it takes to remain on top. Mel Ramos received his first important recognition in the early 1960s. Ramos, along with other artists such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg and James Rosenquist, produced art works that celebrated aspects of popular culture as represented in mass media. His paintings were shown along with theirs in major exhibitions of Pop Art both in this country and in Europe and were reproduced, often with irony, in books, catalogs, and periodicals throughout the world.

A signed limited edition lithograph by Mel Ramos, American (1935 - ) entitled "Peek a Boo Marilyn 3" created in 2002. This piece is an excellent example of Ramos' work in the realm of pin-up pop art and is signed by the artist in pencil, lower right. Mel Ramos is known for his humorous pin-up style using pop art figures.
Though primarily a figurative painter, Mel Ramos has experimented freely with realist and abstract art forms for the past twenty years. A few of his works, such as the ones here, embody both formats. This combination works to enhance the detail and feature of each format while detracting from the duality of the image making it wholly singular. The popularity of his works is evident in the fact that since 1959 he has participated in more than 120 group shows. Born in Sacramento, Calif. in 1935 he has enjoyed great success and critical acclaim as an adventuresome artist with the creativity and sense of humor it takes to remain on top. Mel Ramos received his first important recognition in the early 1960s. Ramos, along with other artists such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg and James Rosenquist, produced art works that celebrated aspects of popular culture as represented in mass media. His paintings were shown along with theirs in major exhibitions of Pop Art both in this country and in Europe and were reproduced, often with irony, in books, catalogs, and periodicals throughout the world.
Some critical observers of the "art scene" persist in classifying Mel Ramos as a Pop Artist. His identification with the Pop movement of the 1960's was much too narrow to account for the broader context of his paintings. His humor is not satire of ridicule. His "parodies” are respectful, affectionate tributes, a celebration of images with personal meaning.