The Art of the Service Station


We’ve created collections of just about every type of image here on Oldgas in one form of another. We have an encyclopedia of oil cans, a gallery of globes and gas pumps, a selection of salt shakers, a series of signs, a museum of maps and a collection of company histories. (Oh, and did I mention a host of handy oilers?)

Since we are the most comprehensive web site on Petroliana collectibles in the country (and probably the universe, including cyberspace), I thought that I might initiate another gallery in the museum of gas geek history.

This gallery is a tribute to the graphic artists that have artistically rendered the service station and equipment in all of its glory for magazine advertisements and map covers. Like the much celebrated Coca Cola advertisements of this same period (1920’s-1960’s), great artists put pen to paper to create these wonderful illustrations of the perhaps lowly service station.

Unfortunately, these artists went un-named and unmentioned and ultimately unrecognized for their contribution to this craft. But in the interest of not letting them be forgotten we will publish their work here to be shared eternally on Oldgas (or at least until Jim Potts gets sick of us and decides not to continue hosting the site).

So here’s what we’re looking for (and it’s fairly simple) Artistic renderings of service stations. That means drawings, paintings and illustrations that were created for advertising purpose that show a service station in some form. No photos please.

Feel free to contribute map covers, advertisements, brochures or service cards featuring the service station. If you need me to post pictures for you send me an email at thepoormansmuseum@verizon.net. We probably won’t catch up with Jarvis’ salt shaker album, but let’s see what we can come up with.

Here are a couple to get us started:





[This message has been edited by the poor mans museum (edited 05-03-2006).]

C Cragg