Wynne Davies' career as a commercial artist, working primarily as a film poster artist and magazine illustrator, spanned several decades, both in Australia and the United States.
Davies produced 'day bill' movie posters for Australian film distributors throughout the 1920s. One of his earliest known posters was for the Australian silent film Silks and Saddles (1921), but most of his posters were designed to promote foreign films in the Australasian market, such as Alfred Hitchcock's Champagne (1928). Davies also created the comic strip, 'Percy the Pom' (later retitled 'Percy the Plantaganet'), for the Sunday Times in 1925.
In 1931, Davies relocated to New York City, where he worked as a film poster artist for several American film production companies. After briefly revisiting Australia in 1933, Davies returned to the United States and began painting covers for various 'spicy' pulp magazines, such as Gay Life, Paris Nights, and Scarlet Adventuress. Davies also drew interior illustrations for adventure pulp magazines, including Exciting Western, Popular Sports Magazine, and Thrilling Western.
Davies had previously illustrated covers, feature articles, and short stories for The Australian Women's Weekly during his earlier visit to Australia (ca.1933-1934), and once more became a regular contributor to the magazine upon returning permanently to Australia (ca.1937). Davies illustrated A.E. Martin's (q.v.) 'Old Sinners Never Die' when it was serialised in The Australian Women's Weekly throughout December 1944-March 1945.
Davies continued working for Consolidated Press throughout the 1940s and 1950s, painting covers for various pulp fiction magazines, such as Frontier Western, Zane Grey's Western Magazine, and Western Monthly, which were published by the firm's Shakespeare Head Press subsidiary.
