Bottom half of two-tiered tempera found in sketchbook (ca. 1963-65). One of countless Flora works without a title.

Fantagraphics Books Art Director Jacob McCovey writes: Flora is jaw-dropping to the point of being a spokesman for TMD, not to mention Bipolar Disorder. The entire tsunami of illustrators/designers making a new-wave career producing rock posters should be paying alms to the descendants of the man who made album design such an emotional experience.

Detail, untitled pen and ink depicting an artist suffering from alcoholic delusions, ca. 1993-94, from sketchbook

We’ve compiled a Railroad Town info page at JimFlora.com, commemorating the print’s official “launch.” If you’re curious to learn more about this 1951 Flora masterwork (detail at right) which can now be purchased as a numbered, limited edition relief print, visit Railroad Town Central. Besides the new edition of 50, there are a small number of proofs available in varying ink colors and papers (info on the RRT page). The current block of five released…

Production is complete: Flora carved Railroad Town in 1951 while living in Taxco. The trial proof relief print above was produced in December 2006. The June 2007 numbered edition (of 50), just completed at Yee-Haw Industrial Letterpress in Knoxville, is even better (alas, no photo yet). Most of the “saltiness” (white flecking) visible above in the peripheries has been eliminated by printmaker Bryan Baker. The impression is solid—and stunning. The longer I stare at the…

Jim Flora Art LLC recently sold #100 of the Mambo For Cats limited edition screen print. As originally announced, the first 100 prints (of 200 produced) were sold for $150/ea., with the caveat that prices would be increased as stock was depleted. JFA is now releasing a block of 25 more prints at $175/ea. The 1955 illustration originally appeared on a 12″ x 12″ RCA Victor LP cover, but the print measures an outsized 20″…

Pen and ink, rendered two months before Flora’s death in July 1998.

Printed, matted and framed by Yee-Haw Industrial Letterpress,Knoxville TN, exhibited at NYC Stationery Show May 2007,to introduce a limited line of Flora cards and calendars.Production underway, projected completion late July.

Mount Adams Winter Scene (1937) was painted by Flora while studying at the Art Academy of Cincinnati, and is the only existing color work from his academy days. It may, in fact, be the earliest existing Flora work—period. (There are undated student-era sketches.) The style, of course, does not reflect Flora’s future direction. At the academy he was training to be a fine artist, and such were his aspirations. It’s ironic that in the depths…

Artifact from the archives: 1954 RCA Victor requisition order for the {ahem!} legendary Mambo For Cats album cover illustration. The work was commissioned by label art director—and longtime Flora buddy—Robert M. Jones, who signed the PO (fee unspecified). The finished sleeve encased a 12″ slab of vinyl, we seem to recall. This iconic Flora design was featured in The Mischievous Art of Jim Flora, and has recently been marketed as a t-shirt, a fridge magnet,…