Hats
Description: This 1562 oil-on-oak panel by renowned Netherlandish Renaissance artist Pieter Bruegel the Elder is a stunningly detailed work. Drawing heavily from the wild, surreal visions of Hieronymus Bosch, it depicts the dramatic scene from the Book of Revelation where Archangel Michael and his faithful angels drive Lucifer and his followers out of heaven.
Description: The front cover of the Argosy All-Story Weekly pulp magazine from June 11, 1921 (Volume 134, Number 5) bursts with drama and flair. A dapper gentleman in formal dinner wear is heroically—or perhaps desperately—yanking a dazzling, wide-eyed woman away a lively restaurant or ballroom where an all-out brawl is erupting behind them. Think elegance meets chaos, with a side order of flying fists.
Description: The January 1943 front cover of Dime Mystery Magazine (Volume 28, Number 2) showcases classic “weird menace” flair from pulp illustrator Milton Luros. In this dramatic scene, a wide-eyed auburn-haired woman in a bright yellow shirt finds herself face-to-bandaged-face with an Egyptian mummy, while the stone wall behind them proudly sports an ancient Egyptian figure—clearly enjoying the show.
Description: The front cover of Spicy Stories magazine from August 1932 boasts lively pin-up art by illustrator Raymond Albert Burley, showcasing a blonde bombshell in a daring red and gold military-style drum major outfit, baton in hand, ready to lead the parade—or maybe just cause a little uproar.
Description: A loud and lively nudge to keep your kindness, quirks, and true colors shining. Sporting groovy retro lettering and a playful flower with an all-seeing eye, this cheerful creation champions being unapologetically you, spreading good vibes, and rocking your uniqueness like it’s a fashion statement.
Description: A whimsical portrait of Lina Luna, the enigmatic twin-bunned girl whose moonlit eyes could light up a blackout. With a mix of doll-like beauty, dark fairytale flair, and anime-style fantasy, this artwork freezes that magical instant when innocence accidentally bumps into enchantment and wonders if it should apologize.
Description: A lone wanderer pauses before a glowing doorway at the end of a candy-colored hallway, caught in that awkward space between “should I stay” and “do I need snacks for the journey?” This whimsical moment tiptoes through thresholds, uncertainty, and the gentle nudge to take the next step—preferably without tripping.
Description: A pastel waiting room teeters between cozy charm and awkward mystery. Pink curtains drape like a shy blush, guarding a lone chair that seems to be plotting its next move. Beyond, a doorway promises adventures—or maybe just another chair—leaving visitors delightfully trapped in a space that’s half memory, half “Where am I again?”
Description: The October 4, 1930 cover of Argosy magazine explodes with pulp drama courtesy of master illustrator Paul Stahr. A soldier grins ear to ear as he operates a mounted machine gun in the middle of a chaotic street brawl, while elegant Chinese pagodas rise serenely in the background—proving that even in the thick of combat, location is everything.
Description: The cover for the January 1934 issue (Volume 4, No. 2) of the classic hero-pulp magazine The Phantom Detective, from Standard Magazines, boasts a delightfully bizarre Rafael deSoto masterpiece. Picture this: a smoking gun, a skeleton in a snappy tuxedo grinning like he just told the world's worst joke, crooning into a vintage ring microphone, while a chorus line of ghostly, horrified faces hovers in the background like they’ve just realized they’re at the wrong party.
Description: The July 1933 cover of the legendary pulp magazine Adventure, courtesy of The Butterick Publishing Company and the brush of Hubert Rogers, is a historical meet-and-greet gone wild. At center stage sits a stately desktop globe, clearly the VIP of the party, while five time-traveling guests pose dramatically around it: a swaggering Spanish conquistador in his shiny morion helmet, a crusader knight jingling in chainmail, a Viking rocking an utterly impractical horned helm, a 17th-century pirate who’s probably eyeing the globe for treasure routes, and a Puritan-era cavalier explorer looking like he’s late for a very important sermon.
Description: The debut issue (Volume 1, No. 1) of the short-lived aviation adventure pulp magazine Captain Combat boasted a cover so dramatic it could make even a hangar blush. Painted by the renowned aviation illustrator Frederick Blakeslee, the World War II scene captures an American warplane gleefully swatting a massive, flaming German flying-wing out of the sky, like a fiery piñata bursting into smoke.
Description: The May 1932 issue of Redbook practically leaps off the rack with a dazzling cover by McClelland Barclay, the undisputed king of the “pretty girl” genre. In the spotlight, a glowing blonde in a blue top grins as she cradles a tiny wire fox terrier—arguably the most pampered pooch ever to grace print—against a bold red background that all but winks and wags in your direction.
Description: The September 1937 cover of Spicy Mystery Stories, courtesy of Culture Publications, is a delightful slice of “weird menace” history. Crafted by the illustrious pulp artist Harry Lemon Parkhurst, it features a blonde damsel swaddled in a sheer blue cloth, wide-eyed at the sight of a skeleton in a leather harness brandishing a blade—proof that even the undead can’t resist a flair for dramatic fashion.
Description: The March 1938 cover of the pulp fiction magazine Spicy Mystery Stories, courtesy of Culture Publications, flaunts a dramatic scene painted by the legendary Hugh Joseph Ward (H. J. Ward). A sinister figure in a red hood lurks behind a woman in a light blue two-piece undergarment, dagger poised—proving that even in pulp fiction, fashion and danger make quite the odd couple.
Description: The October 1935 issue of the pulp crime magazine *Prison Life Stories*, wrangled into shape by none other than Sing Sing’s own Warden Lewis E. Lawes, sports a cover by Hugh Joseph Ward that’s pure melodrama: a stern-faced cop in a crisp blue uniform squints at a mysterious document while a couple of shifty characters lounge in a bright red car, probably wishing they’d picked a less conspicuous getaway vehicle.
Description: A solitary figure struts through a doorway of dazzling yellow light straight into a cosmic cocktail of darkness and stars. Channeling the charm of vintage comics, the punch of pop art, and the shadowy swagger of retro noir, Ooh, How Dark! stirs humor, mystery, and interstellar awe into one bold visual mix—where the great unknown is greeted not with terror, but with a raised eyebrow and a grin.
Description: From a storm of squiggly chaos and jittery doodles, a grinning face pops out like it’s in on a joke the paper doesn’t get. Scribble Smile takes the mess, gives it a wink, and turns it into a mischievous mascot of joy—equal parts daydream, punchline, and abstract art gone delightfully rogue.
Description: A grainy surveillance image shows a seemingly endless archive corridor, lined with filing cabinets under the hum of fluorescent lights. Mixing liminal space vibes, analog horror, and a dash of corporate nostalgia, Forgotten Office Syndrome captures the eerie sensation of roaming through places frozen in time, yet inexplicably waiting for someone to come back.
Description: An impossibly long corridor stretches toward a distant vanishing point, lined with identical doors and geometric patterns that seem to repeat forever. Blending minimalist architecture, liminal space aesthetics, and subtle surrealism, Halfway Hallway captures the strange feeling of being between destinations, suspended in an endless passage of quiet possibility.
Description: A flamboyant red bird stares into the midnight sky under a pale moon, as if waiting for its night shift to begin. Painted in a raw Art Brut style with bold textures and brushwork that looks like it had a few too many espressos, this whimsical portrait fuses outsider art, nocturnal symbolism, and a folk-inspired mystery that might just be wondering where the worms went.
Description: The December 1, 1928 cover of The Saturday Evening Post flaunts a delightfully dramatic scene, courtesy of famed American illustrator Elbert McGran Jackson. His “Dancing Couple” captures an 18th-century baroque duo mid–back-to-back dance-off, the lady twirling in a mountain of ruffled red fabric like a crimson tornado, seemingly challenging her partner to survive the routine without face-planting in his own elaborate footwear.
Description: A romantic, academic oil-on-canvas painting by Flemish-Belgian artist Henri Decaisne (1799–1852) depicts a serene and spiritual scene. In the artwork, a radiant guardian angel watches protectively over a sleeping young child nestled in bed, while a mother rests peacefully beside them.
