| Arthur Pinajian | |
|---|---|
| Born | Arthur Ashod Pinajian (1914-03-28)March 28, 1914 |
| Died | August 19, 1999(1999-08-19) (aged 85) |
| Nationality | Armenian American |
| Area | Writer, Artist |
| Pseudonym(s) | Art Gordon Art Franklin Jay Fletcher Tohm Dixon Tomm Dixon |
Notable works | Madame Fatal Invisible Hood |
Arthur A. (Art) Pinajian (March 28, 1914 – August 19, 1999)[1][2] was anArmenian Americancomic book writer.[1][3] He was active as a comic book creator from the late 1930s throughout the 1950s, during theGolden Age of Comic Books, and as an artist from the 1950s until his death in 1999. He was a member of theEisner-Iger Studio in 1938-39 and ofFunnies, Inc. in 1939-42.[1] Pinajian created theQuality Comics charactersMadame Fatal[4] and theInvisible Hood, also known as Hooded Justice and Invisible Justice.[5]
Born in 1914, Pinajian grew up in an Armenian community inWest Hoboken, New Jersey (nowUnion City, New Jersey), and was a self-trained cartoonist.[3] His parents survived the 1915Armenian genocide and subsequently made their way to the United States. Pinajian's poetic color combinations are linked to the tonalities of his fellow Armenian,Arshile Gorky.[3]
Pinajian worked on many 1930sCentaur Publications titles and features, including 'Captain Juan', 'Egbert the Great', and 'Tim Roberts'. He subsequently joined Funnies Inc.[1] Pinajian also drew 'Captain Terry Thunder' forFiction House, 'Inspector Bancroft' forFox Comics, 'The Wasp' forLev Gleason Publications, and 'Jungle Terror' forTimely Comics. He was a regular atQuality Comics with 'Hooded Justice', 'Invisible Justice', 'Madam Fatal' and 'Reynolds of the Mounted'. In the 1950s he worked onWestern stories forAtlas/Marvel.[1]
He served in theU.S. Army in World War II and received theBronze Star Medal for valor.[6]
Pinajian also painted portraits, landscapes and some abstract works. He has been cited for his work in the field ofabstract expressionism. Pinajian had instructed that the works be thrown away when he died. His wishes were ignored, and $30 million worth of his art was found in the garage of theBellport, Long Island home where Pinajian lived from 1973 until his death in 1999. Two investors purchased the home in 2007 with the intent of renovating it, not knowing the art that was stored there.[7] A collection of Arthur Pinajian's work, discovered in 2007, generated interest in the art community.[8] A day school showed the paintings in March 2013.[9]
At the first gallery exhibit, one painting sold for $100,000, so far the highest price paid for one of Pinajian's paintings although works are usually listed for around $5,000.[10] Thomas Schultz, who helped save the collection, is the full-time registrar. American art historian Peter Hastings Falk is the exhibitions director and chief curator and values the collection at around 30 million dollars.[11] In 2019, an updated estimate put the value of the collection at $90 million.[12]
A 2015 book by Pinajian's cousinPete Najarian, "The Paintings of Art Pinajian, A Family Story," alleges that Pinajian had verbally left his paintings to Najarian, but left no written will. The book seeks to prove that Pinajian never wanted his work “thrown into the garbage,” as was stated by Falk in his book,Pinajian, Master of Abstraction Discovered,[13] which states, "Pinajian left instructions for his collection to be discarded in the town dump."
Pinajian died in 1999.[3] He is buried inCalverton National Cemetery, Calverton, Suffolk County, New York.[2][14]
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