Mel Ramos (1935-2018) was an American figurative painter whose work incorporates elements of realist and abstract art. Born in Sacramento, California, he gained his popularity as part of the Pop Art movement of the 1960s. Ramos is best known for his paintings of superheroes and voluptuous female nudes emerging from cornstalks or Chiquita bananas, popping up from candy wrappers or lounging in martini glasses. He is also a retired university art professor.

Ramos received his first important recognition in the early 1960s; since 1959 he has participated in more than 120 group shows. Along with Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol, he was one of the first artists to make paintings of images from comic books. Ramos produced art works that celebrated aspects of popular culture as represented in mass media.