This beautifully framed piece features an original piece of watercolor artwork glass-framed in an attractive two inch wide black resin frame with a double mat. The outer dimensions of the framed piece are approximately 17” wide x 24.5” high, although the exact size will vary according to the size of the original piece of art.

At the core of the framed piece is the actual piece of original artwork as painted by the artist on textured 100% rag, water-marked watercolor paper. In many cases the original artwork has handwritten notes in pencil from the artist (be sure to “See the actual artwork without the frame” elsewhere in this website). Simply put, this is beautiful, one-of-a-kind artwork.

The outer mat is a rich textured black acid-free mat with a decorative inset white v-groove, while the inner mat is a complimentary colored acid-free mat reflecting one of the team’s primary colors. The website image of this framed piece shows the mat color that we suggest (Orange), but since each piece is custom framed, we are happy to use whatever color mat you wish (depending on availability) – our standard mat colors are:

Light Blue / Dark Blue / Brown / Maroon (close to brown) / White / Silver / Gold / Yellow (bright yellow) / Green (dark green) / Orange / Purple / Red (bright red, somewhat close to PMS 186)

Beneath the artwork is a silver plate with black text describing the original artwork. The text for this piece will read:

This original, one-of-a-kind watercolor painting of the 1943 Chicago Bears uniform is the original artwork that was used in the creation of this Chicago Bears uniform evolution print and tens of thousands of other Chicago Bears products that have been sold across North America. This original piece of art was painted by artist Tino Paolini for Maple Leaf Productions Ltd. 1943 was a NFL Championship winning season for the Chicago Bears.

Beneath the silver plate is a 3” x 9” reproduction of a well known, best-selling print that celebrates the history of the team. The print beautifully illustrates the chronological evolution of the team’s uniform and shows you how the original art was used in the creation of this print. If you look closely, you will see that the print features the actual artwork being offered for sale. The 3” x 9” print looks like this:

The piece is framed with an extremely high quality framing glass. We have used this glass style for many years with excellent results. We package every piece very carefully in a double layer of bubble wrap and a rigid double-wall cardboard package to avoid breakage at any point during the shipping process, but if damage does occur, we will gladly repair, replace or refund. Please note that all of our products come with a 90 day 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Each framed piece also comes with a two page letter signed by Scott Sillcox describing the history behind the art. If there was an extra-special story about your piece of art, that story will be included in the letter. When you receive your framed piece, you should find the letter lightly attached to the front of the framed piece.

If you have any questions, at any time, about the actual artwork or about any of the artist’s handwritten notes on the artwork, I would love to tell you about them. Simply email me, Scott Sillcox, at scott@heritagesportsart.com and I will tell you everything I can about your original piece of art. The artists and I spent well over ten years of our lives creating these pieces of original artwork, and in many cases there are stories I can tell you about your actual piece of artwork that might add an extra element of interest in your one-of-a-kind purchase.

Please note that all reproduction rights for this original work are retained in perpetuity by the National Football League unless specifically stated otherwise in writing by the NFL. For further information, please contact Heritage Sports Art at questions@heritagesportsart.com .

 

History

What a year! Bronko Nagurski ends a 5-year retirement and at the age of 35, returns to the Bears, plays 3 different positions, and helps lead the team to an 8-1-1 record and an NFL Championship! In the Championship game, the Bears met the Washington Redskins, and came away 41-21 victors. It's interesting to note that much like today's college teams, the Bears had to wait four weeks between their last regular season game on November 28th and the Championship Game on December 26th.The early 40's were heady times for the Bears in fact, they started off the 1940's with an impressive four straight appearances in the NFL Championship Game. They humiliated the Washington Redskins 73-0 in 1940, they went on to beat the Giants 37-9 in 1941, then lost 14-6 to the Redskins in 1942. As noted above, they then came back with a vengeance in 1943 and defeated the Redskins 41-21.Of note: The 1934 Bears, the 1942 Bears, and the 1972 Dolphins are the only 3 teams in the history of the NFL to go through the regular season undefeated and untied. Sadly, the 1934 Bears lost to the Giants 30-13 in the NFL Championship Game, while the 1942 Bears lost 14-6 to the Redskins in the final game. This then left the 1972 Dolphins as the only team in NFL history to go undefeated and untied through an entire NFL season and playoff.Of special note helmets at this point still lacked any sort of facial protection. This truly was the era of smash mouth football remarkable.