Monkey Business

12/7/2016

I recently acquired a travel poster produced by Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) promoting services to India which was part of a larger series of similarly themed posters they issued around the same time. These posters are not dated, and the image on the lower right is of the only information printed on the poster.

The SAS monkey looked very familiar, and I found this February 1959 Air-India International Time Table with a strikingly similar image. Here we have a trio of monkeys in the famous 'see no evil, hear no Evil, speak no evil' pose.

Now, Air-India has used many exotic birds, large cats and elephants in their Time Table art, but never monkeys. So, is it just a co-incidence, or did one airline copy the other.

Would love to hear from other collectors, especially if someone can date the SAS poster for me.

1 Comment

prabhu

24/7/2020 14:00:46

In response to your query as regards the design of the monkey (macaque) poster of SAS , my research draws me to the conclusion that the generally accepted date is 1955. You are aware that it was designed by Otto Nielsen.
Otto Nielsen was a Danish painter and watercolorist who worked as an illustrator for books, magazines and posters.From 1954 to 1976 he also produced a series of beautiful travel posters and calendars for Scandinavian Airlines System,a company founded in 1946 with the merger of four Scandinavian companies from Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Its first destination was New York, then Bangkok and Buenos Aires, and in 1954
SAS became the first airline to operate a trans-polar route.  There are three suggested dates.Mid fifties1958- 1955-

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/sas-india-monkey-by-otto-nielsen-original-vintage-44-c-748405496b  https://www.amazon.com/Pacifica-Island-Art-India-Scandinavian/dp/B016E6FB6Q
https://www.kapoorgalleries.com/exhibition/images-of-the-exotic-posters-of-india-from-the-golden-age-of-travel/
this suggests 1955 ( there is a slide as well with posters )
https://www.mutualart.com/Artwork/India-By-SAS/971279DE8981B467  this suggests 1967..but this would be a reprint..if at all.   https://www.lauritz.com/en/auktion/otto-nielsen-for-sas-plakat-far-east/i5405359/?utm_source=barnebys&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=barnebys&utm_content=2019-08-19  this has no date  https://www.pinterest.it/pin/542754192573893090/this suggests mid fifties http://www.idesirevintageposters.com/nielsen-far-east-by-sas-monkey-1959.html this shows 1959..so obviously another reprint  https://www.thevintageposter.com/poster-detail/?inv=9616  This is the same art but for the Far East   https://www.lot-art.com/auction-lots/Travel-Poster-India-SAS-Airline-Monkey-Otto-Nielsen/217-travel_poster-25.1.20-antikbar  1950s https://www.vialibri.net/years/books/169343677/1955-otto-nielsen-original-sas-india-monkey-poster-by  1955  Hope this helps.
May I add that your site is wonderful for those who wish to have a glimpse at the glory of Air India. Best wishes

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