{"title":"Gary Velasco","description":"\u003cp\u003eGARY VELASCO was an artist, author, and aviation historian who devoted more than 27 years to painting vintage aircraft nose art on flying and static aircraft. He is the author of \u003cem\u003eFighting Colors: The Creation of Military Aircraft Nose Art\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVelasco founded Velasco Enterprises Fighting Colors Collection in 1995, relocating it to Virginia in 2002. He was commissioned to paint nose art on major warbird restoration projects, including the B-17 Memphis Belle, the B-24A Diamond Lil, and the New England Air Museum’s B-29 Jack’s Hack.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen not writing, Velasco worked as a guitarist before turning to aviation art, and in his later years transitioned to working as an air-art historian following a diagnosis of ALS. His work preserving nose art traditions underpins \u003cem\u003eFighting Colors\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGary Velasco was born and raised in Stamford, Connecticut, and lived in Ruckersville, Virginia. He died on May 21, 2026.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGary Velasco’s books are published by Turner Publishing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBrowse more: \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/books-new-releases\"\u003eNew Releases\u003c\/a\u003e · \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/award-winning-books\"\u003eAward-Winning Books\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"fighting-colors","title":"Fighting Colors: The Creation of Military Aircraft Nose Art","description":"\u003cdiv\u003eSince the early days of flight, military pilots have personalized aircraft with artistic creations, giving each plane a unique identity and aircrews a sense of pride in \"their war bird.\" This comprehensive volume covers the technical aspect on how nose art was applied to vintage military aircraft, with hundreds of fighters and bombers pictured. The uses of materials, supplies, and development of nose art designs are discussed with surviving nose artists. The author examines and analyzes WWII-era photographs and reveals their content along with numerous photos never before published. Recreating step-by-step flying war bird nose art restorations is outlined for the first time. \u003cem\u003eFighting Colors\u003c\/em\u003e is an enjoyable read for military personnel and a graphic tool for all enthusiasts of pinup and vintage aircraft nose art.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c!-- amazon-buylink --\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003csmall\u003eWe earn a commission for purchases made through the following links.\u003c\/small\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/1596527587\/ref=nosim?tag=tpcecomm-20\" rel=\"sponsored nofollow\"\u003eshop for this title at Amazon\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c!-- \/amazon-buylink --\u003e\u003c!-- bookshop-buylink --\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/bookshop.org\/book\/9781596527584\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003eshop for this title at Bookshop.org\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c!-- \/bookshop-buylink --\u003e","brand":"Gary Velasco","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":43238210928856,"sku":"9781596527584","price":32.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43238210961624,"sku":"9781630263263","price":42.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0563\/7786\/8475\/files\/9781596527584_FChigh_mockup_v2_1738797662_7e315152-de4b-4da4-a21e-68d511b3a708.jpg?v=1791039198"}],"url":"https:\/\/turnerpublishing.com\/collections\/author-gary-velasco.oembed","provider":"Turner Publishing","version":"1.0","type":"link"}