The Banana Salesman Series was a series of paintings technically exploring the mixture of expressionism with airbrushed realism. Contextually the paintings asked what was the greater reality, a behind the surface philosophical abstraction (think "Ship of Fools") or the perceived reality conditioned in us by constructed commercial media and the impulses in us that result in some crazy behavior and belief systems. Lefever is asked about this series, which was painted in the late 1980s, and decided to put a few of his favorites up as a review. Here are his picks. |
Watchtower: Watchtower was a cross from the original studies (which used only bananas to test the tech aspect of the paintings, "because they were quick and easy objects to render the spatial illusions..." and the addition of contextual elements. The painting was painted atop a collage of pages from the Watchtower.
In the header above is a detail from "KING SIZE" |
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No Payments 'Till October : This painting also derived it's title from an ad found in in the L. A. Times selling automobiles. LeFever loves to point to the ad and the strange surreal "peanut Creature dressed for 4th of July Madness" and ask, "You think I am strange with the things I am making - look at this... this you accept and respond to?" He has a point there as he goes on to discuss the crazy world of commercial motivation and people's psychology. NPTO was the first non study painting and the last one to make use of the Bananas. |
FAT: Lipstick, pearl necklace, Cadillac fins as rockets - definitely phallic references, and the loud notion that "sex sells". This painting measures 7 feet across and was exhibited on a bed of collaged poetry as a mat mount. Where as the other paintings are on Untemperred Masonite, this was the first to be painted on canvas. Lefever plans to repaint this at some point and intends to get it back to his studio, stating that he was never quite satisfied with the face of this piece. |
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Bullet Bras and Toasters: One of the more popular titles from the series was derived from a fifties ad for bullet bras and the current obsession with breast implants. LeFever never quite explains the chrome toasters other than an allusion to kitchens, male aesthetics, and feminine anatomy. |
Give It To Her: Give It To Her is one of the artists favorites that remains in his collection. The title is taken directly from an ad (which is Xerox transferred in the mouth of the salesman) that was selling a vibrator that could ease the sore neck muscles of an attractive young lady... The vibrator is rendered for teeth and the space is filled with vintage Cadillacs. Draw your own conclusions regarding the Cadillac... |
Original Studies
Below are several of the studies where Lefever tested the idea of expressionism mixed with realism. It was apropos for LeFever to use the airbrush for the realism as it has a long pre-computer history in retouching advertising photos of people and product - to give them "perfection appeal". Because of his choice to use a simple cylindrical shape (the banana), the Series became referenced to and established as the Banana Salesman Series. |
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