Bily Snel [20th-century]
American
Modern man & Modern woman, ca.1958
Ink on paper
37 x 7 inches (each)
Signed at lower right and lower middle : ‘Bily Snel / ©’.

Pair of ink drawings.

Marking type: Horitzonal rectangle white label with printed text and typwritter text.
Location: verso.
Text: ‘[scroll border around entire label] STYLE # A-30 / Modern Woman / FRAMED AND STYLED FOR / Hecht. Co. / CLIFFORD ART STUDIOS, INC. N. Y. C.’.

Bily Snel [20th-century]

Bily Snel was an African-American illustrator, designer and musician.  Not much is known about Snel.  “Bily Snel” is most likely not the artist’s given name, making research on his birth and death date difficult.  He is best known for an obscure Jazz / Rockabilly novelty 45 RPM music record from 1958.  Snel’s apartment may have doubled for his record label’s location, Wild Records, which was located at 129 West 69th Street in New York’s upper west side.  The two song record (one on each side) contained “One Too Many Heads” and “Queen of Halloween”.  The record garnered a “Fair” rating, the second lowest rank, from music industry magazine The Cash Box in October, 1960.

Snel’s illustration works consist of ink drawn figures in a style reminiscent of the sculpture of Alexander Calder.  Snel 2D works date from about 1952-1959.  The artist may have freelanced or worked for the Hecht Department Store in New York through his association with Clifford Art Studios, Inc.  Clifford Art Studios, inc. produced prints by a roster of creative artists and illustrators for corporations and department stores in the 1950s and 1960s.