The forgotten society : lives out of sight in nursing homes, prisons, and mental institutions : a...

TheForgottenSociety

TheForgottenSocietyLivesOutofSightinNursingHomes,Prisons,andMentalInstitutionsAportfolioof92Drawings

ALANE.COBER

WITHANEWINTRODUCTIONBYLESLIECOBER-GENTRY

DoverPublications,Inc.,Mineola,NewYork

CopyrightIntroductioncopyright©2012byLeslieCober-Gentry

Allrightsreserved.

BibliographicalNoteThisDoveredition,firstpublishedin2012,isanunabridgedrepublicationoftheworkoriginallypublishedbyDoverPublications,Inc.,in1975.AnewIntroductionbyLeslieCober-Gentryhas

beenspeciallywrittenfortheDoveredition.

LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationDataCober,Alan,E.The forgotten society : lives out of sight in nursing homes, prisons, and mental institutions : a

portfolioof92drawings/AlanE.Cober;withanewintroductionbyLeslieCober-Gentry.—Dovered.

p.cm.Originallypublished:1975.ISBN-13:978-0-486-48353-5ISBN-10:0-486-48353-31.Cober,AlanE.–Themes,motives.2.Peoplewithmentaldisabilitiesinart.3.Olderpeopleinart.4.

Prisonersinart.I.Title.NC139.C58A42012741.9’73—dc23

2011044487

ManufacturedintheUnitedStatesbyCourierCorporation48353301

www.doverpublications.com

Tomyfather,SolWalterCohen

Publisher’sNote

AlanE.Coberwasanartistwhoderivedhisinspirationfromlife,aclassicistandrealist in the graphic tradition that extends from Dürer to George Grosz. HisworkstemsfromthesamefeelingofcommitmentthatinformsGoya’sDisastersofWarandBenShahn’sSacco-Vanzettireportage.Mr.Cober’s fatherwasacriminal lawyer for48yearsuntilhisdeath in the

springof1974.Theyoungartistcloselyobservedhisfather’sactivities,gainingfirsthandknowledgeofcourtrooms,policeworkanddetentionofcriminals.Thisexperiencequickenedhisinterestinsocialinequitiesandthedarksideoflife.Thedrawingsinthepresentcollectionconcernnotonlythesecourtroomand

prisonsituations,butalsootherfacetsofCober’ssocialinvolvement:studiesofold age homes and of Willowbrook, an institution for the mentally retarded,children and adults. This is the “forgotten” society that the artist recordswithbothobjectivityandsympathy.Coberwas born inNewYorkCity in 1935.He grew up in theBronx, and

attendedpublicschools inManhattanand theBronx. In1952hewasataprepschoolinRiverdale,theBarnardSchoolforBoys.From1952to1954hestudiedattheUniversityofVermont.Artschoolfollowed—theSchoolofVisualArts—until late 1956. There he studied with Al Werner, who instilled in him theimportanceofdrawingandseeing;RobertFrankenbergandHowardSimonalsoinfluencedhimatthattime.Coberwasdrafted into theArmy inApril1958.Afterbasic trainingatFort

Dix,N.J., he spent the rest of his twoyears teachingofficers andheading thegraphicsdepartmentattheSpecialWarfareSchool,FortBragg,N.C.Thegroupofmenatthatschoolwereallwelleducated;handpickedbytheDepartmentoftheArmy,theyincludedteachers,lawyers,writers,artists,FulbrightscholarsandStateDepartmentpersonnel.Coberspentthosetwoyearsdrawingandlearning;thatiswherehefelthereceivedhisrealeducation.Leaving the service,Cober freelanced, buildinghis reputation andhis style.

AmongthemagazinesthathavepublishedhisworkareSportsIllustrated,Life,Redbook, McCall’s, Parents Magazine, the Saturday Review, the SaturdayEveningPost andTime.His interest in reportagewas renewed in 1971,when

Newsweek commissioned a series of drawings on prison life. Then Lookcommissionedhimtogo toCambridge,Mass., todrawDanielEllsbergfor thearticle “Ellsberg Speaks” (October 1971). In February 1972 he convinced theNewYorkTimesOp-EdpagetosendhimtoWillowbrooktododrawings.Theyneededtwo;hedidfifty.Coberinvestigatedtheplightoftheagedonhisown.As an illustrator-artist Cober received over 200 different awards, including:

ArtistoftheYear,1965—ArtistsGuildofN.Y.Goldmedals,1969,1971,1974—SocietyofIllustratorsGoldmedal,1974—ArtDirectorsClub,N.Y.Goldmedal,1971—ArtDirectorsClub,Washington,D.C.Goldmedal,1971—ArtDirectorsClub,ChicagoAudubonArtistsMedalforCreativeGraphics,1971JohnTaylorArmsAwardforCreativeGraphics,AudubonArtists,1972

Cober also was represented in many national drawings shows, such as “ACenturyofAmerican Illustration” at theBrooklynMuseum,1972.Twoof thechildren’sbooksforwhichhehaddonepictureshavebeenamongtheNewYorkTimestenbestillustratedbooks,in1968and1969.AlanCoberlivedwithhiswifeEllenandtheirchildrenLeslieandPeterina

170year-oldhousefilledwithAmericanfolkart.HediedonJanuary17,1998.

IntroductiontotheDoverEdition

Hehasbeencalleda“PioneerofExpressionistIllustration”byStevenHellerinInnovators of American Illustration. Alan E. Cober called himself a visualjournalist.He enjoyed the experience of being there to do the drawing.Cobercomments,“Ienjoytheelectricpartofit,theeyetohandtopaperpartofit.Theexpressionist part of it comes from not knowing what I am doing. It is likestartingalloveragaineachtimeIsitdowntodoadrawing,notaconsciousact,liketryingnottocopyyourself,justforgetfulness.”Cober, a 2011 Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame recipient, has received

numerousawards,includingArtistoftheYearfromArtistsGuildofNewYork;the Hamilton King Award; ten Gold and Silver medals from the Society ofIllustrators;twoGoldandtwoSilverfromtheSocietyofPublicationDesigners;six Gold medals from the Art Directors Club; and, most recently, theDistinguished Educator in the Arts Award from the Society of Illustrators.“Young art directors have givenme the high compliment thatmywork looksfresh,”Coberexplains.Intheyearsthathedrew,painted,etched,andsculpted,heturnedillustration

fromacraft toanartof independent,expressivethinking.AfterWorldWarII,populareditorialartwasrealisticandfilledwithsentimentality,leavinglittletothe imagination.NormanRockwellwas at the height of popular illustration atthat time. Rockwell, a fan of Cober’s work, shared the samewalls of a NewYork art gallery. After viewing the entire show, Rockwell asked whether hecouldmeet theartist.Cober took thisasacomplimentfromRockwell—whoseworkwas so different from his—that Rockwell appreciatedCober’s style andjournalisticviews.WhenCoberbeganhis career in the1960s, illustrationwasbeginning to change toward a new expressionism.Cober set a goal to addresspoliticalandsocialissues,asheviewedactualevents.Coberwaspartofasmallgroup of contemporary illustrators who believed that narrative art couldinfluenceand informpublicopinion.TheworksofBenShahn,GeorgeGrosz,and Albrecht Dürer, some of Cober’s biggest influences, were collected andhunginhishome.In the 1960s, it was unheard of for illustrators to present their own

assignments to the art director to exercise their own point of view. A few

progressive art directors opened their pages to work that complemented thiseditorialcomment.AlanCobertraveledthecountryvisitingthenationalparksoftheUnitedStatesforaseriesofpostershewascreatingfor theNationalParksService. He was commissioned to complete several illustrations of MountRushmore;ThomasJefferson’shome,Monticello;theBattleofGettysburg;andColonialWilliamsburg.Cober,alongwithhisfamily,traveledtoviewsightsthatwererelevanttohis

commissions. Every family vacation was a mix of work and vacation. IparticularlyrememberheadingtoMountRushmore,inSouthDakota.Myfatherwouldregularlytakeouthissketchbookoneverytripwemadeinordertorecordthesightswewereobserving.Hehadhundredsofsketchbooksstoredacrosstheshelves of his studio, each one filled with adventures, vacations, people, andanimalsfromdifferentpartsoftheworld.Asafamilywewereusedtowaitingatleast an hour at a time for him to complete a drawing. Unlike a tourist whowouldtakeoutacameraordiarytodocumentanevent,Coberwoulddocumentthe event by drawing in his sketchbook. On each drawing Cober woulddocumenthis journalisticviewsandpersonalfeelingsthathewasexperiencingatthatgivenmoment.TheexperienceoftravelingtoMountRushmorehadalwaysstoodoutinmy

mind—Iwasfouryearsoldandwasjustrealizingthepowerofadrawingandanaudience.Coberwould takeouthis sketchbook,alongwitha small5x7-inchWinsorNewtonwatercolor set, India ink, a #102 crow quill dip pen, a silverflask inwhichhecarriedhiswater,anda foldingchair.Hecarried these inanarmy-green bag, which in the ’60s was unheard of for a man to wear on hisshoulder. Hewould sit and draw for hours, using this traveling studio. Largecrowdswouldalwaysbedrawn tohim; theywanted toobservewhat theartistwasworkingon.Ifoundthisveryexciting,andIlookeduptohimandwhathewascreating.Iwouldtakeoutmysketchbookandsitalongsidehim.WewouldtraveltoAmericanIndianreservations,andmyfamilywouldwaitwhilehedrewthepeoplewholivedonthereservation.AlanCoberlovedtonotonlydrawthepeople,buthealsoenjoyedthepersonalitiesandfamilylifeofthecharactersaswell. He would become friends with whomever he had just drawn, learningmuchabouttheir lives.Hewouldsitandtalkwithhismodelsandgettoknowthemandtheirbackgrounds.OurtravelstookustoplaceswherewehadapressorVIPpasstogobehind

the scenes backstage. We would later travel to Mt. Vernon, GeorgeWashington’s estate, where Cober was creating drawings for a muralcommissionedby theSmithsonian Institution inWashington,D.C., forGeorge

Washington’s 250th birthday celebration in 1982. The summerswere spent inCape Cod, Massachusetts, by the beach. Cober would work on freelanceassignmentsfrequentlyduringtheday.Longwalksonthebeachwereanexcusetofindinterestingobjectstodrawinhissketchbook,whetheritwasapartofacrab shell, which he would turn into a drawing in his sketchbook titled“ConversationForOne,”oradecayingdeadbird thathewouldcollectandsitdownanddraw.Coberwascompulsiveaboutdrawingfromnatureandcapturingboth its grit and beauty in his sketchbooks. He was a fanatic about keepingjournals—hundredsofthem.AlanCober’spresencewasaspowerfulashisart.Drawing,toCober,wasthe

keytoeverything.Theonlywaytolearnwastodoitconstantly,everyday,allday.Hisownsketchbookslinethebookshelvesofhisstudio.Thedrawingsdatebacktotheearly1960sandcontinuetothedayhedied,January17,1998.Cobercollectedblankbooks touseas sketchbooksat every locationhevisited.OnacombinationfamilyandbusinesstriptoWilliamsburg,Virginia,inthe1970s,hecommissioned a bookmaker to create a 12-book volume of handmade leathersketchbooks,withbeautifuldeckledpaperinsideandhandmademarbleizedendpapers.Hewouldfrequentantiquestoreslookingfortintoys,folkart,Americanpaintings, and handpainted furniture. This is where he located the “BirthdayBook,” one of his most important sketchbooks. The “Birthday Book” was anantiqueboundbook,withaninteriorofhandmadepaper.Everypageinthebookhad themonthsanddaysof theyear.Coberwouldsearchout thebirthdaysoffriends,family,andacquaintances.Eachpersonheknewwasrequiredtomodelforhim, close-up, revealingwrinkles and imperfections. If twopeoplehad thesame birthday, he would divide the page. He first would ask what day thebirthdaywas, and thenwould advance to that page and create the portrait onyourday.Thebirthdaybookwasanotherexcusetosit,talkwith,anddraweverypersonwhowouldbeavailabletohim.Hissenseofhumorwasoftenapparent,butheusedhumortodrivehomeaseriouspoint.ThisistheelementthatgivesmuchofCober’sworkitsimpact.AlanCoberoftenhadapassiontocreateseveralillustrationsonaninteresting

orcompellingsubject,andhenevershiedawayfrompursuinghisgoal.Whenhedecidedtocreateaseriesofdrawingsonthecircus,hecalledKennethFeld,theowneroftheBarnumandBaileyCircus,directly.Feldwashappytoprovidehimwith the credentials he needed to spend several days backstage. A trip to thecircus with Cober was unlike any other. The circus had come to New YorkCity’sMadison SquareGarden.Wewould enter backstage and stay for hourswhilehesketchedthedifferentcharactersandperformances.Hewouldbecome

friendswithmany of the performerswhile they spent long amounts of timingposingbetweentheirperformances.LouJacobs,the6'1"legendofclowns,wasafavoritemodelofCober’s.Otherfamousperformerswhowerehappytomodelfor him wereMishu, the “smallest man on earth”; Philippe Petit, the famoushigh-wireartistwholatergainedfameforhishigh-wirewalkbetweentheTwinTowers of the World Trade Center in 1974; the lion tamer Gunther Gebel-Williams;andanyotherpersonoranimalthatwasinterestingtohim.Hedrewtheirlivingconditionsintheirtrailersandtheirfamiliesandpets,reachingintoacultureunknowntotheaudiencewhowasviewingitfromthebleachers.Clownswouldcometoourhomeandstayfordays,frequentlydressingusupinclownmakeup.Cober felt an obligation to document how different people lived andsurvived in their daily lives. These drawings would later be exhibited at theTerryDintenfassGalleryintheearly’70s.Theperformersandclownsappearedon opening night, standing in front of their drawings. It was a wonderfulevening.Cober’s desire to inform the public of the hidden treatment of our elderly,

prisons,andtheinstitutionalized,wasrootedinhischildhoodyears.Hisfather,Sol Walter, a criminal lawyer for forty-eight years, brought Cober to “TheTombs”prisontomeetwithhisclientseachSundaybeforetheywouldgoofftoamuseumfortheday(thiswasthenicknamegiventoseveraljailsofsouthernManhattan.)Asayoungboy,hecloselyobservedhis father’swork, absorbinghisvisionsofcourtrooms,policework,andtheincarcerated.Hismother,Molly,was president of the Sarah Starkman League for Retarded Children. As ateenager,Coberwouldfrequentlyvisitwithhismother tovolunteer tocareformanyofthesechildren.Heoftenvisitedhiselderlyrelativesresidinginnursinghomes. He enjoyed drawing the residents of the homes close-up, as well aslisteningtothestories that theytoldhim—frequentlyjottingdowntheirstoriesontohispaper.Hewouldlovinglydrawandsurroundpeoplewiththeirfavoritesayings,songs,andcomments.Hesawthemasbeautifulpeople,withwonderfulstories,whichhecouldpassontoothers.Cober’saimasa“visualjournalist”wastobeaforceforchangebygraphicallyexposingtherealitiesofourtimes.OneofCober’sprojectswastovisittheWillowbrookmentalhealthfacilityin

Staten Island, New York. His longstanding relationship with The New YorkTimes providedhimpermission to enter the facility as amemberof the press.HisassignmentwastocreatetwoillustrationsfortheTimesOp-Edpage,buthecreatedfiftydrawingsforhimselfthatwouldbeamajorpartofthecreationofhisbookTheForgottenSociety.For threeweeks,Cober left in themorning totravel to Staten Island to visit Willowbrook. At night he would return with

storiesoftheinstitution.Informingthepublicofwhatwashappeningwithinthehospitalalsotookamajortollonhim.Atayoungage,Iheardhimspeakaboutthe sounds and smells of the building,which had a lasting effect on him.Hissensitivitytowardsthesepeoplewasdifficultforhimtohandle.Hespokeaboutthemanwhobobbedhisheadoverandover;themanwhowouldtwirlthestringoverandoverallday;theyoungchildrenwhowereabandonedbytheirfamilies;andthescreamingandsmellsoftheinstitutionthathecouldnotignoreorforget.LikeBenShahnandhisdepictionsofhispolitical viewsof social injustice,

Cober would address political and social issues on his drawing paper, whileobserving real events. He enlivened conceptual illustration, a method thatenabled illustrators to impart information and opinion rather then decorate apage,andhecreatedsignificantvisualessays: thevisitofPopeJohnPaulII tothe United States, for Rolling Stone Magazine in 1987; Jimmy Carter’sreelection campaign in 1980;NASA’s space shuttle launch; theWorld Series,forSportsIllustrated in1975; life inastate institutionfor theretardedforTheNewYorkTimes;aseriesofdrawingsofprisonsystemsforNewsweek;and,forNASA,heexecuteddrawingsandwatercolorsforSpaceShuttleIII,Skylab,andApollo16.Cober frequentlycalledFredWoodward, theartdirectorofRollingStoneMagazine,withideasthathewasexcitedabout.Wouldn’titbegreatifhefollowedthePopearoundthecountry,drawinghimineverycityasifthePopewas on a concert tour?Woodward agreed, and soon Cober was traveling thecountryinthefirstrowofeverystadium,drawingthePopeasheaddressedthecrowdinseveralcities.IwaslivinginArizonaatthetime,andIturnedonthetelevisionasmyfather,sketchbookinhand,wasdrawingthePopefromafewfeetaway.Manyofhismostimportantassignmentsweretheassignmentsthathepresented to the client. He would complete several more drawings in hissketchbook than the publication would use; these often became the basis forpersonal prints and watercolors. Cober’s art was about communication. Theworldwashisaudience.AlanE.Cober’smostcompellingandemotionalvisualessayscanbeviewed

inTheForgottenSociety,abookfilledwithninety-twocompassionateimagesoftheinstitutionalized,theprisonpopulation,andtheelderly.Thebookopenswithanimageof“Tommy”[thefrontispiece].Coberwritesinthebottomrightcornerof thedrawing:“This isoneof thosedrawings that come to life. I love it as Ilove the oldman in it. It is he. It is when I draw that [know] no one drawsbetter.”HethenwriteswithhiscrowquilldippenaboutTommy’slife.TommycametoAmericafromSicily,Italy,in1894andmarriedin1914.CoberwritesabouthisownexperiencewithTommyandthensignsthedrawing“8Feb1973.”

He not only draws Tommy on paper, but he also captures his personality inwriting.Whenthereaderexperiencesthedrawing,heorsheseesTommyasanendearing human, with a wonderful story, who comes to life. After Tommypassed away in 1974,Cober’s compulsion to finish the story continued in hisstudio’s leather-bound version: “Tommy died in November 1974, 2 monthsbeforethisbookwaspublished.Hewasoldbutvital—Ihadtapedhimsingingtheweekbefore.Hewasapooroldmanandthismighthavebeenthehighlightof a long life—The New York Times printed his drawing in the Sundaymagazineand it is in the Illustration17show. It is ironic.Hewasan inventorandabarber.HehadnostomachbecausehehaddrunkperoxidetoridhimselfofSyphilis.Hewasanaturaldoctor—andhemayhavebeenJesusChrist.WhowasItoargue?”ThiscommentarywastypicalofCober’swork.TheviewerisnowdrawnintoTommy’slife,andthepicturebecomesunforgettable.Whereatfirstwe see an empty old man, we now view him through Cober’s eyes withsympathyandcompassion.AdrawingofAlanCober’sfather,SolWalter,datedMay61973,showshis

fathersittinginachair,wearingahat,handsfolded,lookingdown.Coberwrites,“When I did this drawing of him hewas wearing an old shirt and dungarees(thingshewouldneverwear–healwaysworeatieandjacket).Ihadjusthelpedhim takea showerand it exhaustedhim.”WhenSolWalterdied,Coberagainwroteinhisleather-boundbook,“DaddiedinMarch1974.Hewas711/2.Hewouldhavebeen72onOctober22,1974.Hewasalawyerforsomethinglike48years.AlltheyounglawyersintheCriminalCourtslovedhim.Hewasagoodtrial lawyer,butneverhadachancetopreparehiscases–alotofitwas5cand10ccases…Healwayswantedtobeajudgeandheneverwasandthathurtbuthe succeeded as a lawyer but that was a stepping stone for him and left himfrustratedinhis48yearsasalawyer.Onemanwenttothe(electric)chairandthat depressedhim. ‘Theman sayshewants to be free or die, hewon’t pleadmanslaughter so he died.’ Iwas about 12years oldwhen this happened and Iremember my mother telling my sister Diane to go easy on him, he wassaddened…”Cober’sstory,filledwithsympathyandconcern,continuedtofillthepaperasifhewerewritinginhisprivatediary.The reader, turning the pages, witnesses Camp Salomon and the Country

Home, both homes for the aged.A year after completing his drawings,Coberreturnedtothesameward.HecomposeshisfeelingsaboutameetingwithDavidAthen. “DavidAthen recognizedme as theman that did his picture–he couldhardly see, but he knew me anyway–a good head, but very saddened by hisfrailty…hediedsoonafterhis100thbirthday.Hewasalwayssettinghimselfon

firebecauseheoverfilledhispipe.”“David’sonfireagain!”InthedrawingofMaySchening andMrs.Getz, created on June 6, 1972, atWestledgeNursingHome in Peekskill, New York, Cober writes, “For a half hour I drew Mrs.Scheninggettingtheimpressionshedidn’tknowIwasthereletalonedrawing.Someonewalkedbyandaskedherwhyshedidn’tsmilefortheman?Shesaidthat if he toldmewho hewas and that hewantedme to smile Iwould havesmiled. I fainted!”Thisdrawingwonagoldmedal forbooks in theSocietyofIllustrators annual show in 1976. The book won a gold medal from the ArtDirectorsClubofNewYork.Cober illustrated each person, along with his or her habits. There was the

illustratedpictureofa“head-bobber”andthemanwhotwirledhisstring.Therewerethehospitalshevisitedandthenwrote,“Probablynoonecametovisitthisdying lady—all dignity was gone—she had relatives because they sent herChristmas cards.”At home, Coberwould speak about his friend Jimmy. “MyfriendJimmy,”Cober inscribed,“forawhile I senthimpostcardswhenever IwentsomewherebutlikeeveryoneelseitwaseasytoforgetandIjuststopped.PoorJimmy.”CobertraveledtotheMethadoneclinicsandspoketothepatientsanddrewtheirportraits.OnSeptember1972,hewenttotheWaverlyCenterforSocial Services, where a barrier kept the clients and workers apart. He laterwrote in his leather-bound book, “This was a story for the NewYork TimesSunday Magazine on Welfare—I started drawing the Methadone people onWelfare.Ispoketothemandfoundthemveryarticulateinaprimitiveway.”Cober finishesThe Forgotten Society by illustrating the LegalAid Society,

wherehecomments:“LegalAidSocietydoingarraignments,”signed2February1971.Headds,atalaterdate:“HeinsistedIdrawhim—Ididandhadtoparethenose down 3 times—He never asked me again.” The prison drawing showsyoung inmates posing in their cells at the detention center at the “Tombs.”Finally,TheForgottenSocietycloseswithaneeriedrawingoftheelectricchairatGreenhaven Prison, Stormville, NewYork, dated 26 February 1971. Coberinscribesonthedrawing,“ThefirstexecutioninthischairwasatAuburnPrisonJuly7,1891.Thischairwasmoved fromSing-Sing toGreenHavenPrison inJanuaryof1971.”AlanE.Cober livedwithhiswife,Ellen, and twochildren,LeslieandPeter,inOssining,NewYork.ThisistheverysametownwhereSingSingPrisonstillexists.Cober’smanyachievementsasanartisthaveledtojournalisticcommissions

fromsuchpublicationsasLife,Look,RollingStone,Esquire,Newsweek,ScienceDigest,TheAtlantic,TheNewYorkTimes, and several cover commissions forTimemagazine.His corporate clients includeExxon,CBS,AmericanAirlines,

IBM,GeneralElectric,ITT,andTexaco.Hisone-manshowsincludetheSocietyofIllustrators,NewYorkCity;theKatonahGallery;theAlbrechtMuseum;UtahStateUniversity,BrighamYoungUniversity;JohnandMabelRinglingMuseumofArt;ArtCenterCollegeofDesign;GeorgiaMuseum;BurchfieldArtCenter;theArt Institute ofBoston; and two shows at theTerryDintenfassGallery inNewYorkCity.Hisgroup shows include theBrooklynMuseum, theWhitneyMuseum ofAmericanArt, and theNewYorkHistorical Society.Hiswork isrepresented in thepermanentcollectionsof theMinnesotaMuseumofArt, theNewBritainMuseum,theAlbrechtMuseum,thePhiladelphiaFreeLibrary,theLibraryofCongress,NASA,andtheNationalAirandSpaceMuseum.In1987,Cober became Professor of Art and Distinguished Visiting Artist at theUniversityofBuffalo,StateUniversityofNewYork.Therehetaughtadvancedillustration and thematic drawinguntil his death in 1998.Cober passed on hiswisdom to the next generation of illustrators, commenting, “I have alwaysstressedtomystudentsthattheymusttakechancesinordertogrow.Thereisnoshortcut,onlyhardwork.Lookaroundyou,notjustatthefadsoftoday,butalsoatthehistoryofart,thepastandpresent.Lookatfilm,gotothetheater,read,gotoconcerts,travel,anythingtohelpyougrowbecauseallofthisendsuponyoursheetofpaperorcanvas.Itisyourpersonality,yourstyle.Itisyou.”

—LESLIECOBER-GENTRY

TheForgottenSociety