PBA Galleries

57x78 cm (22½x30¾"), framed. Titled in lower left, signed by Sloane in lower right with inscription by him "To Luis, Peter & Suzie."

Striking oil painting of a biplane soaring through the clouds, most likely flying over Long Island Sound and Roosevelt Field, New York. The dedication of the painting is to Admiral Luis de Florez, his son Peter de Florez, and his daughter-in-law Suzanne (Suzie) Humphreys-Ford-de Florez. Luis de Florez (1889-1962) was a naval aviator and a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. He was influential in the development of early flight simulators, and was a pioneer in the use of "virtual reality" to simulate flight and combat situations in World War II. During this time, and after the war, he was in charge of Roosevelt Field, where, in addition to training his son and daughter-in-law to fly, he befriended the painter Eric Sloane, who also learned to fly. Sloane, a prolific painter and book illustrator who began his career as a sign painter, is noted for his depictions of the sky and clouds, and received commissions to paint works for the U.S. Air Force. The title of the painting, "Early Bird" is another name for the bi-planes of that era and is also the name of the flying association called The Early Birds. The painting was given by Suzanne de Florez to the current owners about fifteen years ago, prior to her death.

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