Norman Rockwell and Friends - Heckscher Museum … · LONG ISLAND’S BEST 2017 RESOURCES Norman Rockwell, World of Charles Dickens aka A Merry Christmas to Everybody! A Happy New

LONG ISLAND’S BEST 2017 RESOURCES

Norman Rockwell, World of Charles Dickens aka A Merry Christmas to Everybody! A Happy New Year to all the World!, 1937, [detail]. Mort Künstler Collection. Courtesy Norman Rockwell Family Agency.

Norman Rockwell and Friends American Illustrations from the Mort Künstler Collection

December 10–March 5, 2017

ARTWORK IMAGES

EXHIBITION LABELS

These exhibition labels and artwork images for the exhibition Norman Rockwell and Friends: American Illustrations from the Mort Kunstler Collection are to be used for educational purposes in coordination with the high school student exhibition Long Island’s Best: Young Artists at The Heckscher Museum 2017.

2 Prime Avenue Huntington, NY 11743

631.351.3250 www.heckscher.org

Education Department

631.351.3214 [email protected]

http://www.heckscher.org/

mailto:[email protected]

How to Read an Object Label

Example:

(1) Joseph Christian Leyendecker

(2) American, (3) b. Germany, (4) 1874-1951

(5) Egyptian Queen (aka Cleopatra), (6) cover illustration for The Saturday Evening Post,

(7) October 6, 1923

(8) Oil and mixed media on canvas

(9) Mort Künstler Collection

(10) In addition to appearing on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post, this work has been consistently included in major exhibitions and exhibitions catalogues devoted to American Illustration. The painting’s allure has as much to do with the dimensional aspect, as it does with its seductive subject matter. Leyendecker created this bas-relief sculpture by modeling plaster and gluing it to the canvas, which he then painted.

(1) Artist name

(2) Artist nationality

(3) Where artist was born, if different from nationality

(4) Years artist lived artist still alive)

(5) Title of artwork

(6) Additional description for the artwork

(7) Date the artwork was completed or published

(8) Art materials used

(9) Credit to who gave or leant the artwork to the Museum

(10) Text about the artwork

Introduction

For over five decades, the renowned Oyster Bay artist Mort Künstler has collected the work of

America’s illustrators, amassing a collection that traces the history of illustration art in America. In

the late 19th and early 20th centuries, illustrated magazines and books were primary sources of

entertainment and information, assuming a cultural significance equivalent to television and digital

technology today. Artists like Howard Pyle, N.C. Wyeth, Maxfield Parrish, and Norman Rockwell

conjured a world of swashbuckling heroes, dramatic adventure, otherworldly fantasy, and homespun

values embraced by generations of Americans. Many of America’s leading artists were widely known

through illustrations that appeared in popular mass-produced publications like The Saturday Evening

Post, Scribner’s Magazine, and books by emerging and established authors.

For most of history, the goal of the visual arts had been to tell a story, giving visual form to scenes

from history, literature, and daily life. In the Middle Ages, illuminated manuscripts, usually religious

in nature, combined hand-written text with delicately painted images. With the invention of the printing

press in the 15th century, a variety of processes were developed and adapted that enabled the

production of illustrated text, first as woodcut illustrations, and later in etchings, engravings, and

lithographs. By the latter part of the 19th century, a coalescence of technological, social, and

economic factors gave rise to the Golden Age of Illustration, variously dated from the 1880s to the

1920s. At that time, the development of reproductive photographic processes and half-tone

reproductions that preserved tonal quality fueled a proliferation of illustrated magazines and books

read by an increasingly literate public. Depicting sentimental themes or dramatic adventures, the

country’s illustrators envisioned the aspirations of the nation and gave visual expression to the

American character.

Mort Künstler began his career in the 1950s, when photography began to replace illustration and

modernist art movements had created a gulf between the fine and illustrative arts. For three decades

Künstler produced illustrations for magazines and books, as well as advertising and movie posters,

and in the 1980s he turned his attention to subjects from American history, depicting singular

moments in the nation’s story. Pyle, Wyeth, Rockwell, J.C. Leyendecker, and Dean Cornwell were

his idols and he began collecting their work. Today his collection includes over four dozen artists that

encompass the pantheon of American illustrators and proves the adage “A picture is worth a thousand

words.”

Maxfield Parrish

American, 1870-1966

Janion' s Maple (a.k.a. Under Summer Skies), 1956

Oil on board

Mort Künstler Collection

Maxfield Parrish was the most popular artist in America from

the turn of the 20th century until Norman Rockwell–who

described Parrish as “one of my gods”–rose to fame in the

1940s. Parrish’s career helped shape the Golden Age of

American Illustration, during which the artist created almost

900 works, including calendars, greeting cards, and magazine

covers. In 1934, Parrish painted a series of landscapes for an

annual calendar published by Brown & Bigelow, for whom he

continued to work for three decades. His beloved work is characterized by its fantastical settings and

neoclassical imagery, as seen in the King Cole mural behind the bar at the St. Regis Hotel in midtown

Manhattan, for which Parrish is especially renowned.

Janion's Maple (aka Under Summer Skies) exemplifies an aspect of Parrish’s work for which he is

widely recognized—the luminous colors, specifically the hue dubbed “Parrish blue” that appears in

much of his work. Parrish achieved this nearly incandescent shade by employing a glazing technique

in which several coats of oil and varnish were applied to the surface of his paintings.

Janion is a Welsh surname derived from a personal name popular in the Middle Ages. It evokes the

allure of medieval times and the rugged landscape of Wales.

An illustrator with a penchant for historical subjects, Norman Mills Price is known for his meticulously

detailed scenes, which are based on thorough research. He worked in both color and black and white,

but was particularly recognized for his illustrations in pen and ink, which appeared in various

publications, including Liberty, Harper’s Weekly, The Century, American, True, Cosmopolitan,

Argosy, and Collier’s.

Price is also noted for his remarkable book art, including illustrations for novels by Robert W. Chambers and the English writer Rebecca West, as well as the stories of William Shakespeare. In 1905, he illustrated Tales from Shakespeare, an English children’s book written by Charles Lamb and his sister Mary Lamb in 1807 and published in several editions through the years. The Weird Sisters, Valentine, Beatrice and Benedick, and Othello (seen in the display case) were produced for the 1905 edition.

Norman Mills Price

American, b. Canada, 1877-1951

The Weird Sisters, illustration for Tales from Shakespeare, 1905

Opaque watercolor on illustration board


The Weird Sisters, or The Three Witches, are characters from Shakespeare’s great tragedy Macbeth, which relates the story of the Scottish general, Macbeth, who is prophesied by three witches to one day become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and encouraged by his wife, Macbeth murders the king, Duncan, and takes over the throne. He commits other murders to divert suspicion, and soon becomes a tyrannical ruler. Plagued by guilt and paranoia, Lady Macbeth commits suicide and Macbeth eventually goes mad. Price captures the following scene featuring the trio of witches who are concocting a potion to bring forth apparitions and spirits during Macbeth’s visit to their cavern:

Fillet of fenny snake, In the cauldron boil and bake; Eye of newt, and toe of frog, Wool of bat, and tongue of dog, Adder’s fork, and blind-worm’s sting, Lizard’s leg, and howlet’s wing – For a charm of pow’rful trouble Like a hell-broth boil and bubble. Double, double toil and trouble, Fire burn and cauldron bubble… IV.i. 12-21

Norman Mills Price


Valentine, illustration for Tales from Shakespeare, 1905



This work illustrates a scene from The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Considered Shakespeare’s first play, the comedy is the story of two friends, Valentine and Proteus. Valentine leaves his home in the city of Verona for Milan, while Proteus stays behind with his beloved Julia. Proteus’s father, however, has alternate plans and sends him to Milan as well. Upon arriving there, Proteus falls in love at first sight with the duke’s daughter Silvia, who has planned to elope with Valentine. To destroy their relationship, Proteus reveals their plans to the duke and Valentine is banished. In the meantime, Julia has assumed a male disguise and travels to Milan to reunite with Proteus. The banished Valentine becomes the leader of a band of outlaws, while Silvia goes to look for him. The outlaws seize Silvia, but she is rescued by—and then spurns—Proteus, who tries to rape her in retaliation. Valentine intervenes, but out of friendship to Proteus yields to the couple. At that point, Proteus sees Julia, who has revealed her identity, and he is reminded of his love for her. Two weddings are planned: Valentine to Silvia and Proteus to Julia.

Norman Mills Price


Beatrice and Benedick, illustration for Tales from Shakespeare, 1905



This illustration by Price features two characters from Shakespeare’s comedy Much Ado About Nothing, whose plot is a play on words. During Shakespeare’s day in Tudor England, the word “noting,” which meant gossip, rumor, and overheard conversations, sounded the same as “nothing,” which references the title. As a result of “noting,” the characters Benedick and Beatrice are tricked into confessing their love for each other, while another character, Claudio, is deceived into rejecting his love, Hero, and leaving her at the altar after being led to believe that she was unfaithful. In the end, Beatrice and Benedick set things right and they all joyfully celebrate a double wedding. Price captures the moment Benedick pledges his love to Beatrice:

I will live in thy heart, die in thy lap, and be buried in thy eyes; V.ii. 91-2

Norman Mills Price


Thomas and the Fairy Queen, undated

Oil on canvas board


In this work, Price illustrates a scene from the tale of Thomas

the Rhymer. Thomas the Rhymer, or “True Thomas”, was a

legendary character believed to be based on Thomas

Learmont, or Thomas of Erceldoune, a 13th-century poet and

prophet who was born near Erceldoune, now Earlston in

Berwickshire, Scotland. Although different versions of the

story exist, there are several common threads. According to

the myth, Thomas was transported to Fairyland, where he

served the queen and upon his return was bestowed the ability

to foretell the future. It is believed the legend arose to explain

Thomas’s prophecies of significant events in Scottish history. The story is probably best known

through the ballad “Thomas the Rhymer,” included by Sir Walter Scott in his Minstrelsy of the Scottish

Border, which was published in 1802. Thomas’s prophecies first appeared in literary form in the early

15th-century in The Romance and Prophecies of Thomas of Erceldoune, and they were later

published with explanatory notes in Europe and America in 1875.

Norman Mills Price


Introducing the Fiancé, book illustration for The Rake and the Hussy by Robert William Chambers, 1930

Tempera on board


Price created this image as an illustration for Robert William Chambers’ novel The Rake and the Hussy, published in 1930. An excerpt from the story narrating the scene is recorded on the back of the work:

“It was with a different gentleman I eloped, not with this one, whom I beg permission to introduce to you--.” “In God’s name,” roared her grandfather, “how many gentlemen have you eloped with?”

DISPLAY CASE:

Norman Mills Price


Man and Woman on Hill, undated

Tempera on board


Norman Mills Price


Man and Woman Eating, undated

Tempera on board


In this charming work, Price displays his considerable skill in the meticulous detail seen throughout the painting. Despite its diminutive size, Price evokes a cozy, well-appointed room with a sporting painting on the wall to the left and a rooftop city view seen through the latticed window.

Norman Mills Price


Othello, illustration for Tales from Shakespeare, 1905



Shakespeare’s Othello is one of the playwright’s greatest tragedies. It is the story of four central characters: Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army; his wife, Desdemona; his loyal lieutenant, Cassio; and his ensign (junior officer), Iago. Expressing hatred for Othello for promoting Cassio to the position of lieutenant rather than himself, Iago plots against them both. Failing in his first attempt to destroy Othello and Desdemona’s marriage, Iago lures Cassio into a drunken fight, costing the lieutenant his new position. He then urges Cassio to beg Desdemona to intervene on his behalf, while planning to use the contrived relationship to convince Othello that Desdemona and Cassio are lovers. Othello becomes mad with jealousy and smothers his wife, killing her. When he learns of Iago’s betrayal, Othello kills himself. Price depicts the scene in which Othello defends his love for Desdemona after Iago’s initial effort to ruin their marriage:

Yet, by your gracious patience, I will a round unvarnish’d tale deliver Of my whole course of love;

I.iii. 89-91 Charles and Mary Lamb

Tales from Shakespeare

T.C. and E.C. Jack, London and Edinburgh, 1905


Tales from Shakespeare was written by Charles Lamb and his sister Mary in 1807. The two volumes—Charles wrote the tragedies and Mary penned the comedies—were adapted for children and relate the dramas in prose rather than in Shakespeare’s characteristic iambic pentameter. The book is a children’s classic and has been republished several times over the years to encourage an early love for the stories of Shakespeare. This edition is entirely illustrated by Norman Mills Price.

Anton Otto Fischer

American, b. Germany, 1882-1962

Sailing into the Sunset, undated

Oil on canvas


Anton Otto Fischer traveled to the United States as a deck hand on a German ship and worked on American boats for three years before pursuing art. His experience at sea influenced him throughout his life, directing his professional career, as well as his subject matter. In 1910, Fischer sold his first illustration to Harper’s Weekly and began illustrating for The Saturday Evening Post—a relationship that lasted forty-eight years. In that time, the artist created over one thousand illustrations, focusing on a variety of subject matter, including women and babies, sports, dogs, and horses, although he is best known for his work featuring the Navy, ships, and the sea. He is noted for his illustrations for Treasure Island, Moby Dick, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, in addition to marine scenes for several series, including Cappy Ricks (1915), Mr. Glencannon (1930), and Tugboat Annie (1931). Upon viewing his seascapes, Vice Admiral Russell Waesche appointed Fischer a lieutenant commander in the Coast Guard during World War II, for which he was tasked with depicting the heroism of the Merchant Mariners and Coast Guardsmen. His drawings are archived in the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut.

Dean Cornwell

American, 1892-1960

Captain Blood (“From the old fort Blood

surveyed Don Miguel’s squadron…”),

illustration for “The Chronicles of Captain

Blood” by Rafael Sabatini, Hearst’s

International-Cosmopolitan, July 1930

Oil on canvas


Nicknamed the “Dean of Illustrators,” Dean Cornwell was a preeminent artist who served as president of the Society of Illustrators and the National Society of Mural Painters. His work, as well as his classes and lectures at the Art Students League in New York, influenced countless artists, both emerging and established. Cornwell began his career as a cartoonist for the Louisville Herald, but it was not long before his paintings were also featured in other publications, including Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar, and Good Housekeeping.

In addition to illustrations, Cornwell executed murals for the Los Angeles Public Library and New York’s General Motors Building, as well as post office murals in Chapel Hill and Morganton, North Carolina under the auspices of the Federal Art Project. Captain Blood was created as an illustration for Rafael Sabatini’s Captain Blood: His Odyssey. The adventure novel was originally published in 1922, although Sabatini had first introduced the character in a series of short stories featured in Premier Magazine and reprinted in Adventure Magazine in 1921.

Harold von Schmidt

American, 1893-1982

Major Terrill & the Outfit, illustration

for “Ambush at Blanco Canyon” by

Donald Hamilton, The Saturday Evening

Post, February 1957

Oil on canvas


An illustrator whose work helped to incite

renewed interest in Western art, Harold von Schmidt is best known for his scenes featuring cowboys,

horses, and the Old West, for which he received the first gold medal awarded by the National Cowboy

Hall of Fame in 1968. The artist specialized in magazine illustrations, primarily for Collier's Weekly,

Cosmopolitan, Liberty, The Saturday Evening Post, and Sunset.

Von Schmidt’s Major Terrill & the Outfit illustrates a scene from the short story “Ambush at Blanco

Canyon” by Donald Hamilton, which appeared over four weeks in The Saturday Evening Post in

February 1957. Soon after, the story was adapted by Hamilton into the novel The Big Country, which

was immortalized in film in 1958. The story focuses on two rival families—the wealthy Terrill clan,

headed by cattle baron Major Henry Terrill, and their neighbors, the Hannasseys—who were engaged

in a long-standing feud over water rights for their cattle.

Frederic Remington

American, 1861-1909

The Bronco Buster, 1909

Bronze


Painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer, Frederic Remington

specialized in depictions of the American West. His images

were featured as illustrations in many popular publications, yet

as he matured, he moved away from illustration to focus his

attention on painting and sculpture. Although he had not

initially thought of himself as a sculptor, Remington attempted

his first clay model—a cowboy on a bucking horse—in 1895.

Although a challenging subject compositionally, Remington

completed Bronco Buster within a few months and had a plaster made from which 23-inch bronze

casts were produced. Bronco Buster became Remington’s most popular work and the artist was

credited with the invention of “cowboy” sculpture, a popular genre among collectors of Western art. A

cast was presented to Theodore Roosevelt by the Rough Riders after he returned to the United States

following the Spanish American War, earning Roosevelt’s remark, “There could have been no more

appropriate gift from such a regiment.” Remington considered the gesture, “the greatest compliment

[he] ever had.”

Remington later reworked the composition to create a larger, 32-inch cast. He extended the rider’s

arm outward, raised the stirrup flaps, and modelled the surface of the horse and rider more loosely in

keeping with the heroic scale. Although more than 200 of the 23-inch model were cast, fewer than 20

of the larger version were produced.

Frederic Rodrigo Gruger

American, 1871-1953

[Medieval Street Scene], undated

Carbon pencil on paper


Frederic Rodrigo Gruger studied drawing under Thomas Anshutz at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and early in his career became enamored by the pen-and-ink works of Edwin Austin Abbey, Charles Reinhart, and Charles Keene. Gruger established his career at the Philadelphia Public Ledger, becoming known for his on-the-spot sketches of current events. He eventually developed a photographic memory and eye for detail, which later enabled him to draw realistic illustrations without the use of posed models or photographs. The artist was recognized for his signature style of using Wolff carbon pencil on board. He often rubbed his sketches with a stump or eraser after applying a watercolor wash, which resulted in a

greater range of tonal values, but also obscured detail. Gruger would then build up forms using the Wolff pencil. The board he often worked with—so much that it came to be known as “Gruger board”—was inexpensive cardboard used by newspapers for mounting silver prints and it became a mainstay for illustrators for several decades. The artist’s skill in expressing the emotional aspects of his subjects gives his works a monumental presence beyond their physical size. Gruger’s work was featured in numerous publications, most significantly The Saturday Evening Post, for whom he produced over 2,700 illustrations during his long association with the journal. He also illustrated stories for Cosmopolitan, Harper’s, Harper’s Bazaar, McCall’s, Hearst’s International, and Redbook.

Norman Mills Price


[French Revolution Mob Marching], undated

Gouache on board


Pruett A. Carter

American, 1891-1955

Lincoln’s War Cabinet, 1929

Oil on canvas


Pruett Carter was an illustrator known for his flattering depictions of women and detailed western themes. He worked primarily for women’s magazines, including Ladies Home Journal and McCall’s, but produced his first illustration assignment while serving as art director for Good Housekeeping. Carter later became a freelance illustrator and an influential instructor, serving as an illustration professor at Grand Central School of Art in New York and the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, among others. Lincoln’s Cabinet was commissioned by the Lincoln National Life Insurance Company as one of a series of paintings depicting various human interest episodes in the life of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was a source of inspiration for a country in crisis during the Great Depression and the Insurance Company recognized that images conveying his honesty, hard work, and his belief in equality, freedom and the American Dream would appeal to the American public. Other artists contracted for the series included Dean Cornwell, J. C. Leyendecker, and Frederic Mizen.

Winslow Homer

American, 1836-1910

Rush's Lancers (aka Rush’s Lancers,

Franklin’s Advance; Rush’s Lancers,

Franklin’s Advance Scouts; Rush’s

Lancers–the Sixth Pennsylvania Calvary),

1886

Oil on panel, en grisaille


Winslow Homer is one of the most important American painters of the 19th century. Although he

began his career working as a commercial printmaker and later as a freelance illustrator, he is best

known for his landscape, seascape, and genre paintings. In 1861 at the onset of the Civil War, Homer

was hired as an artist-correspondent for the new illustrated journal, Harper’s Weekly. He spent four

years documenting the conflict, as his reputation as an artist grew significantly throughout the United

States. While many of Homer’s sketches were published as wood engravings during the war, he also

later used them as studies for oil paintings created in the years after the war.

Rush’s Lancers depicts the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry, a Union regiment named for the colonel who

led the unit, Richard R. Rush, and their use of 9-foot lances. The regiment was assigned to the Cavalry

Division of the Army of the Potomac. While Homer was with them, he witnessed the siege of Yorktown

and the Battle of Fair Oaks. This work was the first of 15 Homer illustrations published by Century

magazine in their series “Battles and Leaders of the Civil War” (November 1884-November 1887).

The popular articles were reissued as a four-volume set between November 1887 and January 1889.

Homer dated the painting according to the date of the sketch upon which it is based.

Newell Convers Wyeth

American, 1882-1945

Kamerad, illustration for The Pictorial Review, March, 1919

Oil on canvas


One of America’s greatest illustrators, Newell Convers (N.C.) Wyeth created over 3,000 paintings and illustrated 112 books—25 for Scribner’s alone, including Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island (1911), for which he is best known. A pupil of Howard Pyle, Wyeth was only 20 years old when his first work was published—a painting of a bronco buster that was featured on the cover of The

Saturday Evening Post in 1903. His illustrations subsequently appeared in numerous publications, including Century, Harper's Monthly, and Ladies’ Home Journal. Wyeth was also known for his historical subject matter, including heroic images of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, as well as scenes of Civil War combat featuring Stonewall Jackson and Ulysses S. Grant. During World War I, he was commissioned by the U.S. government to create recruiting and propaganda posters. Wyeth’s work focused on the bravery and patriotism of soldiers, depicting dramatic images of American infantrymen defeating their enemies as in Kamerad, where terrified German soldiers raise their hands in submission to the American army. The word “kamerad” was used by German soldiers in WWI as a cry of surrender. Robert Fawcett

American, b. England, 1903-1967

[World War I Officers in Club], undated

Watercolor on paper


Although trained as a fine artist, Robert Fawcett turned to commercial art in 1944 when he contributed story illustrations to various publications, including The Saturday Evening Post. He subsequently executed reportorial assignments, using finely detailed and well-researched imagery to document historical and current events, such as this scene of World War I officers. In light of his methodical approach, he was called an “illustrator’s illustrator,” as a trained eye was required to recognize the superior quality of his work. Not surprisingly, Fawcett was often commissioned for subjects more complex than the typical, light-hearted illustrations popular at the time.

Norman Mills Price


Waiting to Report (aka English Colonial Officer), undated

Pen and ink on paper


Tom Lovell

American, 1909-1997

[Man Crossing Bridge], 1940

Oil on canvas


Tom Lovell worked as a freelance illustrator for almost 40 years, illustrating stories for many popular publications, including National Geographic, Life, Time, Cosmopolitan, Ladies’ Home Journal, Woman's Home Companion, McCall's, and Collier’s. He began his career illustrating pulp fiction, specifically Dime Mystery magazine, during his junior year at the College of Fine Arts at Syracuse University. Eventually, Lovell’s passion for history and his meticulous eye for detail broadened his subject matter. Lovell joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 1944, serving two years as staff artist for Leatherneck Magazine, the U.S. Marine Corps publication. He produced several historical paintings during this time, and his work Tarawa Landing is on display at the Marine Corps Historical Center in Washington, D.C. Lovell was also commissioned by Life magazine for several illustrations commemorating the centennial of the Civil War.

Dean Cornwell American, 1892-1960 [Two Men in Doorway], illustration for “Backwash” by Mary

Synon, Good Housekeeping, March 1922

Oil on canvas A love story of compassion and generosity, Mary Synon’s

“Backwash” is set in a Vancouver hospital, where homeless Nedda

Charleton is brought for emergency surgery. Doctor Robey,

betrothed to the well-to-do Alice Hillyer, falls in love with Charleton.

Coincidentally learning that she was adopted when her mother had

died, Hillyer rescinds her engagement to Doctor Robey,

recognizing his and Charleton’s love for one another and believing

that Charleton deserves a chance at a better life—just as Hillyer

had unknowingly received from her adopted parents years earlier.

Howard Pyle

American, 1853-1911

Roger Bacon, 1903

Oil on canvas


Author and illustrator Howard Pyle is often regarded as the “Father of American Illustration,” due in part to his work, but more significantly for his enduring commitment to teaching. Modestly educated, Pyle recognized the dearth of opportunity to study illustration art. As a result, after establishing his career, he turned his attention to instructing others. In 1894, he founded the first School of Illustration in the United States at the Drexel Institute (currently Drexel University) in Philadelphia and later established the Howard Pyle School of Art (1900-1905) in Wilmington, Delaware and in the summers at Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. Many of America’s greatest illustrators attended his classes, including Clifford Ashley, Harvey Dunn, Anton Otto Fischer, Philip R. Goodwin, Maxfield Parrish, Ernest Peixotto, Frank Schoonover, and N.C. Wyeth. These artists and their students became known as “The Brandywine School,” preserving Pyle’s legacy. The artist explored a range of subject matter throughout his career, including European history from the classical period through the 18th century. He wrote and illustrated several works set in medieval Europe and England. Roger Bacon, who was known as “Doctor Mirabilis” (Latin for “wonderful teacher”), was a 13th-century English philosopher and Franciscan friar who advocated for education reform and was a major proponent of experimental science. Bacon himself studied mathematics, astronomy, optics, alchemy, and languages. He is recognized for many achievements, including being the first European to record the process of making gunpowder, as well as his prescient ideas for flying machines and motorized ships and carriages.

Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

Clara Barton, 1964-65

Graphite on paper


One of America’s most beloved and well-known artists, Norman Rockwell achieved early success as an illustrator, executing his first commission for a set of four Christmas cards while studying at The National Academy of Design and the Art Students League prior to his sixteenth birthday. He was hired as art director of Boy’s Life, the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America, before he was twenty years old, launching a freelance career as an illustrator for various juvenile publications, including Youth’s Companion and St. Nicholas. In 1915, Rockwell moved with his family to New Rochelle, New York, a popular artists’ community where leading illustrators J.C. and Frank Leyendecker and Howard Chandler Christy resided. His work began to be featured in popular publications, such as Life and Literary Digest, and in 1916 he illustrated his first cover for The Saturday Evening Post. Before long, Rockwell’s name became synonymous with the magazine—the artist produced 323 covers before ending his 47-year tenure with the Post in 1963. He began working for Look magazine, turning to more serious and historical subject matter, including civil rights, poverty, and space exploration. In this work, Rockwell depicts Clarissa “Clara” Harlowe Barton, one of the most respected women in American history. After risking her life to carry supplies and provide support to soldiers in the field during the Civil War, she transformed her efforts into a life’s pursuit, founding the American Red Cross in 1881. This drawing was executed for a bronze plaque decorating an archway at the Women’s Memorial Bell Tower at the Cathedral of the Pines in Rindge, New Hampshire. The four reliefs—depicting Molly Pitcher and the Revolutionary War and World War II, in addition to Clara Barton—were executed by the artist’s son, Peter Rockwell. Joseph Christian Leyendecker


Inside the Train, 1896

Pastel on board


Before Norman Rockwell, his mentor Joseph Christian (J.C.) Leyendecker was the artist whose name was identified with The Saturday Evening Post, as he created 322 covers over his 43-year career with the publication. Leyendecker is renowned for his role in helping to define modern magazine design in the early 20th century, distinguishing the cover as a

unique art form whose imagery should quickly convey its intended message. The artist was known for his depictions of elegant women and rosy-cheeked children, but it was his menswear commissions for which he is most commonly recognized. His characteristic “Arrow Collar Man,” created for the Arrow brand of shirt collars, and his images for Kuppenheimer suits and Interwoven socks established the ideal of the fashionable American male. Inside the Train was executed early in the artist’s career while he was in Europe with his brother Francis X. Leyendecker. In Paris, the brothers studied at the famous Académie Julien and saw the work of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jules Chéret, and Alphonse Mucha, who were masters of Belle Époque poster art. Inside the Train, however, recalls the realism of mid-19th century French artists and is unusual in comparison to Leyendecker’s later, more typical illustrations. Robert Riggs

American, 1896-1970

[Man Giving Last Rites], undated

Litho crayon on paper


Robert Riggs was best known for his large paintings and lithographs of sports—specifically boxing matches—street, and circus scenes. After studying at the Art Students League in New York, he moved to Philadelphia to work for A.W. Ayer & Son, an advertising firm for which he did numerous illustrations. During World War I, Riggs served in France with a Red Cross hospital unit—an experience that influenced his mature work. He copiously sketched the miseries of war, documenting horrific scenes of wounded and dying soldiers as in Man Giving Last Rites on Raft. Riggs returned to A.W. Ayer after the war, but he also worked as a freelance illustrator for popular magazines.

Jon Whitcomb

American, 1906-1988

The Telephone Call, undated

Opaque watercolor on board


Jon Whitcomb secured his first job in art painting movie and vaudeville posters for the Palace Theater in Cleveland, Ohio while in college. He then joined the staff of a commercial art firm, learning his trade and improving his skills, and later cultivated his career in the firm’s New York office designing advertisements and illustrations for national magazines, including The Saturday Evening Post, Ladies’ Home Journal, Collier’s, McCall’s, and Cosmopolitan. The artist became known for his images of glamourous young women—later referred to as “Whitcomb girls”—who were depicted against modest backgrounds composed of simple design elements.

George Gross

American, 1909-2003

The Cairo Mafia, illustration for The Cairo Mafia by Ralph

Eugene Hayes, 1972Oil on board


George Gross followed in the footsteps of his father, David Gross, who had a successful art career working in the fashion industry. Gross began his career illustrating covers for pulp fiction publications such as Mystery Novels Magazine and Double Action Western, while also working as top cover artist for the publisher Fiction House. In the 1950s, Gross shared a studio with the illustrator Mort Künstler in Manhattan, and for the next two decades he worked for men’s adventure magazines like Action for Men, Argosy, Bluebook, Man's Conquest, Man's Illustrated, Man's World, and True Adventures. In the 1970s and 80s, Gross began illustrating popular fiction novels, painting covers for The Avenger series published by Warner Paperbacks and the Nick Carter: Killmaster series for Ace Publications. Cario Mafia is a Nick Carter novel published in 1972 that traces the story of one of the secret agent’s missions that began in a small African jail and included dealings with the New Brotherhood—the Arab version of the Mafia. Frederic Rodrigo Gruger

American, 1871-1953

Mr. Moto, undated

Wolff pencil and wash on paper


Over the course of his career, Frederic Rodrigo Gruger created illustrations for short stories and novels by more than 400 authors, including Edith Wharton, Agatha Christie, William Faulkner, Ring Lardner, Sinclair Lewis, Irving S. Cobb, W. Somerset Maugham, Mary Roberts Rinehart, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Irving Stone. He also illustrated the Mr. Moto series, originally written by J.P. Marquand for The Saturday Evening Post, but also the protagonist of six novels published by the author between 1935 and 1957. Mr. Moto was a fictional Japanese detective and secret agent conceived in response to a demand for stories featuring an Asian hero following the death of American novelist and playwright Earl Derr Biggers, who had created the Chinese-American character Charlie Chan.

James Bama

American, b. 1926

Taxidermy Shop, undated

Oil on board


James Bama is recognized for his realistic paintings and illustrations focusing on Western subjects. Inspired by his love of comic strips like Flash Gordon and Tarzan, Bama studied at the Art Students League in New York with well-known illustrator Frank Reilly to train for a career in commercial art. The artist began working for the prestigious Charles E. Cooper Studios in 1951, and over the course of 22 years created paperback book covers, movie posters, and illustrations for popular publications, including Argosy, The Saturday Evening Post, and Reader’s Digest. He also produced advertisements for major clients such as General Electric and Coca-Cola, and executed portraits for the Baseball and Football Halls of Fame. In 1968, Bama left the commercial art field to pursue a career as an easel painter, usually portraying contemporary images of the American West. Taxidermy Shop exemplifies the artist’s skill in creating highly detailed, complex compositions of riveting interest.

DISPLAY CASE:

Charles Livingston Bull

American, 1874-1932

[Raccoon], undated



Charles Livingston Bull is known for his illustrations of wildlife, but prior to studying art, he pursued an interest in taxidermy. While still a teenager, Bull apprenticed at the Ward Museum of Natural History in Rochester, New York, where his experience dissecting and mounting animals provided an understanding of their anatomy and physiology and later served to enhance the accuracy and detail of his illustrations. Bull worked as Chief Taxidermist at the National Museum in Washington, D.C., and began to spend his free time sketching at the zoo and taking night classes at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. By 1901, Bull decided to pursue a career as a freelance illustrator in New York City. He quickly built a reputation for his animal imagery, producing illustrations for 135 books, as well as popular magazines such as The Saturday Evening Post, Life, Collier’s, and Country Gentleman. The artist

also received commissions for murals and advertising campaigns, most notably his 1920 illustration of a leaping tiger for a Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus poster.

Robert Kuhn

American, 1920-2007

[White Tailed Deer],

undated

Gouache on paper


Robert Kuhn was one of America’s most popular wildlife painters. He began sketching as a child during frequent visits to the Buffalo Zoo and later studied commercial art at the Pratt Institute in New York. The artist worked as an illustrator from 1940 until 1970, producing exceedingly accurate depictions of animals for outdoor magazines, including Field and Stream, Outdoor Life, and True, as well as advertisements, books, and the Remington Arms Company Game Art Calendar in 1964. He was renowned for his ability to capture animals in dramatic action, creating expressive, yet authentic compositions. In 1970, Kuhn left his commercial art career to devote himself exclusively to wildlife easel painting. He was honored in a retrospective of his 60-year career at the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson, Wyoming in 2001. Robert Kuhn

American, 1920-2007

[Cougar with Dead Boar], undated

Opaque watercolor on paper


Robert Kuhn

American, 1920-2007

[Leopard], undated

Opaque watercolor on paper


GALLERY 2 Tom Lovell

American, 1909-1997

[Singer Sewing Machine], illustration for "How Isaac Singer Kept Five Women in Stitches" by Alan Hynd, True, January 1955

Oil on panel


Isaac Merritt Singer patented improvements on the design of the modern sewing machine in 1851, when he founded I.M. Singer & Company. In the late-19th and early-20th centuries, they marketed their machine at fairgrounds, as illustrated in this scene for True Magazine in 1955. True Magazine, also known as True, The Man’s Magazine, was published by Fawcett Publications from 1937 until 1974. Charles Dana Gibson

American, 1867-1944

The Education of Mr. Pipp XXV. Before leaving Paris, Mr. Pipp, at the suggestion of his daughters, makes a few purchases. (aka Mr. Pipp at the Jeweler), ca. 1899



Charles Dana Gibson began his art education at the age of fourteen as an apprentice to the renowned American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens. Within a year, however, Gibson realized that sculpture was not his medium of choice, and he started working in pen and ink. He studied briefly at the Art Students League in New York, and sold his first illustration to Life magazine in 1886, beginning a relationship with the publication that lasted for more than 30 years. Best known for his signature “Gibson Girl,” created at the turn of the century, Gibson’s embodiment of the “feminine ideal” set the standard for fashion and beauty in America for two generations and made Gibson the most famous artist of his day. The artist also created satirical drawings of American “high society” in New York and Boston for a popular series for Life magazine entitled “The Education of Mr. Pipp.” Later published as a book in 1899, the drawings illustrated the daily activities and adventures of the fictional character, Mr. Pipp, as he traveled through Europe with his wife and daughters. Mr. Pipp was so popular a character that Gibson co-wrote a stage play based on the character, portrayed by Digby Bell, which later inspired a silent movie that also starred Bell as Mr. J. Welsey Pipp.

Walter Biggs

American, 1886-1968

[Country Store], undated

Oil on canvas


Walter Biggs was a successful illustrator with a distinctive romantic, almost impressionistic style. He was educated at the New York School of Art (now the Parsons School of Design), where he studied with Robert Henri—leader of the Ashcan School—and alongside Edward Hopper, Rockwell Kent, and George Bellows. Biggs later resided in New Rochelle, the well-known artists’ colony, among the top illustrators of the day, including Frank and J.C. Leyendecker, Norman Rockwell, and Dean Cornwell. Although he was never trained specifically in illustration, Biggs was renowned for his technical mastery and refined sense of narrative. The artist became known in the 1920s and 30s for his illustrations featured in many popular magazines, such as Harper’s, Scribner’s, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies’ Home Journal, but he was also recognized for his paintings. Born in Virginia, Biggs often depicted colloquial Southern subjects, as seen in Country Store. These social realist works reflect the influence of his instructor Robert Henri, yet demonstrate a quaint sensitivity characteristic of Biggs’s work.

Saul Tepper

American, 1899-1987

Christmas at Old Farm, illustration for “Christmas at Old Farm” by Ettie Stephens Prichard, The Delineator, December 1934 Oil on canvas


Saul Tepper trained at several New York institutions, including The Cooper Union, the Art Students League, and the Grand Central School of Art, where he studied with the renowned illustrator Harvey Dunn. Tepper worked primarily in oil and was known for his emotionally-charged story illustrations featured in The Saturday Evening Post, Liberty Magazine, Woman’s Home Companion, and American Magazine, among others. He worked in a range of subject matter, and produced advertisements for major clients such as General Electric, Coca-Cola, and General Motors. Tepper also taught for many years at Pratt Institute, The Cooper Union, the New York Art Directors Club, and the Society of Illustrators.

Christmas at Old Farm illustrates a short story by Ettie Stephens Prichard that was adapted into the novel Old Farm and published in 1934. Set in the 1870s on an Illinois farm on the path of the covered wagon trail to Kansas and Nebraska, the narrative was featured in The Delineator magazine, a popular women’s publication founded by the Butterick Publishing Company in 1869. The magazine addressed a variety of topics including clothing patterns, needlework, home décor, and also published fictional stories.

Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

Preliminary study for Under the Mistletoe (Standing Colonial Woman),

Charcoal on paper


Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

Under the Mistletoe (Merrie Christmas), (aka Colonial

Couple Under Mistletoe), cover illustration for The

Saturday Evening Post, December 19, 1936

Oil on canvas


Although famed for the iconic Four Freedoms series, Rosie the Riveter, and his Triple Self-Portrait, Norman Rockwell was beloved for his charming Christmas covers for The Saturday Evening Post. For this 1936 cover, the artist depicted a scene from colonial times, featuring a traveler stealing a kiss under the mistletoe from a tavern serving girl. For the first 25 years of his career, Rockwell painted his scenes from live models, creating a number of charcoal sketches before executing the final piece. He later used a camera to diminish the strain

of working from live models. The full-size studies (at left and right) are executed in complete detail so that the artist could work out the intricacies of the composition. Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

Preliminary study for Under the Mistletoe (Standing Colonial

Man), 1936

Charcoal on paper


Jules Gotlieb

American, 1897-unknown

[Family in Kitchen], undated

Oil on canvas, en grisaille


Jules Gotlieb trained at the National Academy of Design,

the Pennsylvania Academy at Chester Springs, and the

Art Students League in New York, where he studied with

the well-known artists George Bridgman and Harvey Dunn, and he later taught at the Art Students

League himself. He was renowned for his accurate depictions of exotic cultures, based on background

material collected on his travels around the world. The artist produced images for numerous

publications, including Collier’s, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Woman’s Home Companion, Ladies’ Home

Journal, and American Magazine. This monochromatic genre scene was most likely created for a

short story.

Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

Christmas in the Heart, illustration for “Christmas in the Heart” by Rachel Field, American Magazine, January 1941

Oil on canvas


Rockwell painted Christmas in the Heart to illustrate Rachel Field’s story by the same title for the January 1941 issue of American Magazine. It references the popular 19th century quote by W.T. Ellis, “It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air,” while also alluding to Ebenezer Scrooge’s line in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol: “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.” The illustration was published with the following text: “We were welcomed across the threshold of a different world. Merry Christmas! God Jul!” (“Merry Christmas” in Norwegian). Field’s story was published during the height of World War II and Rockwell’s image conveys a message of kindness and compassion for everyone at home and abroad.

Frank Xavier Leyendecker


The right move – “an Investment in Good Appearance” (aka

Checker Game), advertisement for B. Kuppenheimer & Co., The

Saturday Evening Post, December 30, 1922

Oil on canvas


Frank Xavier (F.X.) Leyendecker immigrated to Chicago from

Montabaur, Germany in 1882 with his family, including brother

Joseph Christian Leyendecker. After traveling to Europe and

studying at the acclaimed Académie Julian in Paris, the brothers

returned to Chicago to begin careers in commercial art, sharing a studio and later moving together to

the artists’ colony in New Rochelle, New York. Frank, however, never achieved the success of his

brother J.C. and became known as “The Lesser Leyendecker.” Nevertheless, Frank’s covers for

Collier’s are considered among the most significant of their time, and he also created images for other

publications, including Leslie’s, Life, McClure’s, The Saturday Evening Post, Vanity Fair, and Vogue.

The artist produced advertisements for many clients, such as Luxite Hosiery, Remington Arms,

Palmolive Soap, and Willy’s Motors. Checker Game was created for the popular men’s clothiers, B.

Kuppenheimer & Company—a frequent client of his brother J.C., who was known for his menswear

commissions. The advertisement read, “The right move – ‘an Investment in Good Appearance’,” and

was featured in The Saturday Evening Post in 1922. Prior to the 1920s, clothing ads usually depicted

men in formal settings, although the more casual styles introduced in the 1920s were depicted with

less formality, as in relaxing at a sporting event or playing a leisurely game of checkers.

Norman Rockwell

American, 1894-1978

A merry Christmas to everybody! A happy New Year to all

the world! (aka World of Charles Dickens), illustration for

Reader’s Digest Christmas Gift Subscription Card, 1937

Oil on canvas


As a child, Norman Rockwell cherished evenings spent with his

father, Jarvis Waring Rockwell, as he read aloud the classic

tales of Charles Dickens. Throughout his life, the timeless

stories continued to impact his art, enhancing his narrative

talent and providing inspiration, and he portrayed various

Dickensian characters time and again throughout his career.

The artist painted World of Charles Dickens for a Reader’s Digest Christmas gift subscription card in

1937. The characters are depicted stepping from the pages of a book, on which the author’s name

appears. Bob Cratchit and his son Tiny Tim are clearly identifiable as personalities from Dicken’s A

Christmas Carol and the ghostly figure peering over the right side of the open book suggests the

Ghost of Christmas Past. The quote across the scroll at the bottom echoes Ebenezer Scrooge’s words

near the end of the novel: “A merry Christmas to everybody! A happy New Year to all the world!” The

male figures are all depicted with a sprig of holly in their hats—a characteristic feature of the artist’s

Christmas images.

Dean Cornwell

American, 1892-1960

An Old Fashioned Picnic (aka Picnic in

the Park), illustration for “A Black Angel” by

Bozeman Bulger, Redbook, August 1917

Oil on canvas


Dean Cornwell produced over 1,000 illustrations for poems, short stories, and novels from 1914 through the 1950s. His first commission was for three illustrations featured in the November 1914

issue of Redbook. In 1915, Cornwell began studying under Harvey Dunn and absorbed the master’s painting techniques, which focused on exploring tonal values and the effects of light—an approach that influenced Cornwell throughout his long career. The popular appeal of his impressionistic style resulted in additional commissions for Redbook short stories, a serialized novel, and stories for The Saturday Evening Post. An Old Fashioned Picnic exemplifies Cornwell’s characteristic approach to light and color. The painting was executed to illustrate a short story by Bozeman Bulger (1877-1932) titled A Black Angel, which appeared in the August 1917 issue of Redbook. The women’s magazine was first published in 1903 and initially featured short fiction by well-known authors, along with photographs of popular actresses and other women of note. Still in circulation, Redbook currently addresses the everyday woman, offering articles on topics of beauty, fashion, and health. Dean Cornwell

American, 1892-1960

[Two Women with Parasol], ca. 1920

Oil on canvas


John Gannam

American, b. Lebanon, 1907-1965

Swedish Mother with Children, illustration for “Swedish Mother

and Child” by Mary O’Neill, Good Housekeeping, October 1959

Oil on board


John Gannam was a self-taught artist who became interested in

illustration while working as a messenger for an engraving shop

in Chicago. By 1926, he worked in an art studio in Detroit and four

years later moved to New York, where he pursued a career as a

commercial artist. Gannam produced illustrations for publications

such as Women’s Home Companion, Cosmopolitan, and Ladies’

Home Journal, creating seemingly spontaneous compositions

that in reality were painstakingly achieved through numerous preliminary studies.

Working almost exclusively in watercolor, Gannam was particularly sensitive to the subtleties of light

and its effects on color and the environment. Although Swedish Mother with Children was painted in

oil, it demonstrates Gannam’s talent in rendering sunlight and shadow. The painting was featured in

Good Housekeeping magazine’s “Mothers of the World” series.

Dean Cornwell

American, 1892-1960

A Man for Cousin Emily, illustration for “A Man for Cousin Emily” by

Augusta Tucker, American Magazine, June 1942

Oil on illustration board


Albert B. Wenzell

American, 1864-1917

[Woman Seated by Painting], undated

Gouache on board, en grisaille


Albert Beck Wenzell was known for his turn of the century illustrations depicting fashionable society, often focusing on well-bred young women in drawing rooms. Born into a wealthy family, he achieved success as an artist during the Gilded Age in America—a period of rapid economic growth that created a class of “nouveau riche.” After moving to New York from his hometown of Detroit, Wenzell was hired by Life magazine, whose humorous portrayals of the indulgences of the wealthy provided the artist the opportunity to illustrate high society, specifically women in lavish silk and taffeta gowns. In Woman Seated by Painting with Unread Books, Wenzell depicts one of his characteristic interiors with an extravagantly

dressed woman lounging on a chair in an affluent setting. Wenzell’s popular images appeared in several major publications, including Harper’s Monthly, Scribner’s, Truth, Metropolitan, Collier’s, and The Saturday Evening Post. Two large volumes of his work were later published by Collier’s: The Passing Show (1896) and Vanity Fair (1900).

Joseph Christian Leyendecker


Easter Promenade (aka Victorian Promenade), cover

illustration for The Saturday Evening Post, March 26, 1932

Oil on canvas


The top Post cover artist of his day, Leyendecker created

illustrations for significant holidays throughout the year, including

Easter, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. His

iconic images are still associated with their respective holidays,

especially his trademark New Year’s Baby.

Howard Chandler Christy

American, 1872-1952

[The Happy Housewife], 1935

Oil on canvas


Howard Chandler Christy was best known for his signature “Christy Girl,” although he also worked as a combat artist during the Spanish-American War, which propelled him to international prominence. His battle scenes and military images appeared regularly in Scribner’s, Harper’s Weekly, Leslie’s Weekly, and Collier’s. After the War, Christy worked primarily for Scribner’s, for whom he created his famous “Christy Girl.” Similar to Charles Dana Gibson’s “Gibson Girl,” the “Christy Girl” evolved from an individual image of a woman into a type that captured the essence of the modern American woman—confident, elegant, athletic, and beautiful. The Happy Housewife embodies the characteristic type as she dons a fashionable blue apron, appearing both sophisticated and casual. By 1915, Christy again supported the war effort, painting patriotic posters for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. He became a portrait painter following WWI, and created likenesses of many celebrities and political figures, including Presidents Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover,

James K. Polk, Martin Van Buren, James A. Garfield, and Calvin Coolidge, and also Benito Mussolini. Christy’s 1940 painting of the signing of the U.S. Constitution, which was commissioned for the observance of the Constitution’s sesquicentennial, is among the best-known works on display in the United States Capitol. Joseph Christian Leyendecker


Egyptian Queen (aka Cleopatra), cover illustration for The

Saturday Evening Post, October 6, 1923

Oil and mixed media on canvas


In addition to appearing on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post, this work has been consistently included in major exhibitions and exhibitions catalogues devoted to American Illustration. The painting’s allure has as much to do with the dimensional aspect, as it does with its seductive subject matter. Leyendecker created this bas-relief sculpture by modeling plaster and gluing it to the canvas, which he then painted.

John Richard Flanagan

American, b. Australia, 1895-1964

Oriental Procession, undated

Watercolor on illustration board


John Richard Flanagan was born and educated in Sydney, Australia, where he worked as a lithographer’s assistant and took art classes at the Royal Art Society of New South Wales. In 1914, the artist was hired as a newspaper cartoonist by The Sydney Bulletin, where he refined his talent in pen-and-ink drawing. He settled in New York in 1916, obtaining his first assignment from Every Week magazine, for which he illustrated a story set in China. This and subsequent assignments for Asian pulp fiction characters established the artist as an authority on the Orient, although he did not travel there until many years later. During the 1920s, Flanagan produced illustrations for Collier’s, Redbook, Women's Home Companion, Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, and Liberty. He later illustrated novels by several famous authors, including Rudyard Kipling, Sir Arthur Canon Doyle, Somerset Maugham, and Rex Beach.

Henry Patrick Raleigh

American, 1880-1944

[Woman Standing with Man at Party], undated

Charcoal and wash on paper


Often referred to as one of the most prolific commercial artists

of his day, Henry Raleigh produced over 20,000 illustrations in

the first 25 years of his career. After graduating from the

Hopkins Academy (now the San Francisco Art Institute),

Raleigh was hired as an artist-reporter for the San Francisco

Bulletin and by the age of 19 was one of the highest paid staff

artists for the San Francisco Examiner. He was soon discovered by the prominent newspaper

publisher William Randolph Hearst, who sent him to New York to work for the New York Journal.

Soon after, Raleigh moved to the New York World as illustrator for the newspaper’s special features,

depicting the fashionable men and women of New York high society, who also appeared in his

advertisements for Maxwell House Coffee. His illustrations were ultimately sought by numerous

magazines, such as Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar, Collier’s, and The Saturday Evening Post. During

his career, Raleigh illustrated hundreds of Post stories by celebrated authors, including F. Scott

Fitzgerald, Agatha Christie, Stephen Vincent Benet, William Faulkner, Sinclair Lewis, and Somerset

Maugham.

Harvey Dunn

American, 1884-1952

[Two Nudes on Beach], undated

Oil on board


Harvey Dunn was among the most prominent

artists of the Golden Age of Illustration. Known for his ability to capture both the objective reality and

emotional aspects of a scene, Dunn was also renowned for his influence as a teacher. After studying

at the Art Institute of Chicago, he trained under the legendary artist Howard Pyle, along with a group

of students known as the Brandywine School who later revolutionized the field of illustration. Dunn

studied with Pyle for two years before embarking upon a successful career in commercial art

beginning in 1906. He regularly contributed illustrations for Collier’s, Harper’s Magazine, Scribner’s,

and The Saturday Evening Post.

In 1915, Dunn opened the Leonia School of Illustration with artist Charles S. Chapman. During WWI,

Dunn served as an official war artist assigned to the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in France,

and his documentary drawings and paintings are in the archives of the Smithsonian Institution. After

the War, Dunn taught at the Grand Central School of Art and the Art Students League in New York.

His students included several artists, such as Dean Cornwell, Harold von Schmidt, and Saul Tepper,

who became the most celebrated illustrators of their day.

Wallace Morgan

American, 1875-1948

At the Seashore (aka Beach Scene), undated

Charcoal on paper


Wallace Morgan began his career as a

newspaper artist—an experience that

influenced his spontaneous approach to his subjects throughout his life. He was particularly noted for

his ability to depict the human condition with both humor and compassion. Educated at the National

Academy of Design, Morgan worked as a staff artist for several New York newspapers, including The

Sun, The Herald, and The Telegram. Creating on-the-spot drawings of varied subjects under the

pressure of a deadline helped the artist hone his skills as an illustrator.

Morgan’s quick sketching technique was especially useful when he was assigned to work as an artist for the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) during WWI, recording the battles and daily struggles of life at war. He later produced illustrations for stories in popular magazines including Life and Collier’s, and is particularly known for his collaboration with the writer Julian Leonard Street, who endeavored to present a snapshot of American life in his documentary stories serialized in Collier’s—Abroad at Home (1914) and American Adventures (1917). Morgan traveled across America with Street, sketching mill towns, creole scenes in New Orleans, and Mississippi plantations. At the Seashore is typical of Morgan’s approach—a quick, but detailed sketch, in this case portraying the attire and activities of beach-goers.

TOWER 1

Henry C. Pitz

American, 1895-1976

[Knight and Lady], undated



Henry Clarence Pitz was renowned

both as an illustrator of children’s

books and as an art educator. He was

influenced by the work of Howard Pyle

and Edwin Austin Abbey, and pursued his education at the Philadelphia Museum School of Art (now

the University of the Arts). After a year of service with the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in

France during World War I, Pitz began his career in commercial art, first producing illustrations for

juvenile publications such as Boys’ Life and St. Nicholas, and later for popular magazines like The

Saturday Evening Post, Scribner’s, Harper’s, and others.

By 1922, Pitz began to illustrate books, producing images for more than 160 volumes throughout his career. Knight and Lady is most likely a layout for one of his many manuscripts and is an exceptional example of Pitz’s book design, while also reflecting his interest in historical subjects, specifically the Middle Ages. As a master illustrator, the artist also wrote, edited, and otherwise contributed to a number of books about art and illustration techniques, including Pen, Brush and Ink; The Practice of Illustration; Ink Drawing Techniques; and Illustrating Children’s Books. In addition, Pitz served as Director of the Department of Illustration and Decoration at his alma mater, the Philadelphia Museum School of Art, for 28 years, and was a visiting lecturer and instructor elsewhere. Joseph Pennell

American, 1857-1926

Castle in Ruins, undated



Joseph Pennell is considered one of the

great innovators of the Etching Revival,

helping to revitalize printmaking and print

collecting during the first two decades of the

20th century. He was trained at the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Pennsylvania School of Industrial Arts, during which

he began his professional career etching historic landmarks and illustrating travel articles. In 1884,

Pennell traveled to Europe, settling in London amongst celebrated American artists like John Singer

Sargent and James McNeill Whistler. Pennell’s work was strongly influenced by the technique and

style of Whistler, who was a major figure in the etching revival in London and a close acquaintance.

In 1908, in collaboration with his wife, the journalist Elizabeth Robins Pennell, the younger artist

published a biography of his mentor.

Pennell returned to the United States in 1917 and began to work with lithography, contributing

illustrations to popular magazines such as Century. Throughout his career, Pennell created more than

900 etchings and mezzotints, and more than 600 lithographs, focusing on architectural and landscape

subjects ranging from the Panama Canal to Greek temples. In this drawing, Castle in Ruins, Pennell’s

handling of line and subtlety in tone recalls his work in etching.

Joseph Clement Coll

American, 1881-1921

[Two Men Fighting], 1917



Newspaper artist and book illustrator Joseph Clement Coll received no

formal art training prior to his apprenticeship with the New York

American at age 17. Influenced by the work of celebrated artists Edwin

Austin Abbey and Howard Pyle, Coll quickly learned his craft and

became known for pen and ink story illustrations. He worked for

magazines such as Collier’s, Everybody’s, and the American Sunday

Magazine, illustrating for authors like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sax

Rohmer, and other adventure and mystery writers. The artist’s vivid

imagination and dynamic compositions, along with his ability to

achieve a range of tonal gradations through his superior handling of line, distinguished him among

many other illustrators.


American, 1871-1953

The Editor’s Office, 1916

Charcoal and wash on board



American, 1871-1953

[Courtroom Scene], undated

Carbon pencil and wash on paper


Edwin Austin Abbey

American, 1852-1911

To Hys Mayde Prew, illustration for Selections from the

Poetry of Robert Herrick, 1882



Edwin Austin Abbey began his career in the early 1870s as an illustrator for publications such as Harper’s Weekly and Scribner’s magazine. His long affiliation with Harper and Brothers extended over two decades, during which he illustrated several best-selling books, including Christmas Stories by Charles Dickens (1875) and Selections from the Poetry of Robert Herrick (1882, reprinted 1910). Abbey is also noted for his numerous Shakespearean works and for his mural cycle The Quest of the Holy Grail at the Boston Public Library. In 1878, the artist traveled to England to conduct research related to the Herrick commission, settling there permanently shortly thereafter. Abbey was acclaimed for his exquisite book designs, for which he directed all aspects of the final publication, including type, illustrations, page layout, and binding. Selections from the Poetry of Robert Herrick was an especially important volume, influencing the subsequent publication of literature by American writers. A 17th century English poet and cleric, Robert Herrick (1591-1674) was best-known for his volume of poems entitled Hesperides, which was originally published in 1648, but did not become popular until later. His home was managed by his maid Prudence Baldwin, for whom he apparently had great affection. He dedicated several poems to her, including the homage that accompanies this illustration:

These Summer-Birds did with thy Master stay The times of warmth; but then they flew away; Leaving their Poet (being now grown old) Expos’d to all the comming Winters cold. But thou kind Prew did’st with my Fates abide, As well the Winters, as the Summers Tide: For which thy Love, live with thy Master here, Not two, but all the seasons of the yeare.

Howard Pyle American, 1853-1911 [Men Watching Woman Play the Piano], illustration for In the Valley by Harold Frederic, 1890 Oil on board, en grisaille


In this work, Pyle illustrates a scene from Harold Frederic’s In the Valley, a historical novel set during the Revolutionary War. The story presents the lives of various groups of immigrants and natives of New York’s Mohawk Valley, at home and on the battlefield.

Harry Fenn

American, b. England, 1837-1911

The Colonial Garden (aka Garden and Stately

House), undated



Harry Fenn was considered the most prominent

landscape illustrator in America during the late

19th century. He began his career as a wood

engraver for the Brothers Dalziel—a firm of Victorian engravers founded in 1839—in his native

England, but soon turned his attention to commercial illustration and watercolor painting. Fenn

traveled to the United States in 1860 to visit Niagara Falls and stayed in America for the remainder of

his life.

The artist’s distinctive ability to depict meticulously detailed landscape and topographical scenes

made his work highly desirable, and his illustrations were reproduced in numerous publications such

as Century, Harper’s, and Scribner’s. He was also commissioned for several books illustrating iconic

landscapes throughout the world—first in 1870 for William Cullen Bryant’s volume Picturesque

America, which was followed in 1873 by Picturesque Europe and Picturesque Palestine, Sinai and

Egypt. Fenn was a founder of the American Watercolor Society, the Salmagundi Club, and the Society

of Illustrators.

Edwin Austin Abbey

American, 1852-1911

[City Street Scene], undated

Gouache on paper


TOWER 2

Henry Patrick Raleigh

American, 1880-1944

The Star, 1930

Charcoal and wash on paper


Charles Davis Mitchell

American, 1887-1940

[Woman Sitting, Woman Standing], undated

Pencil on paper


Charles Davis Mitchell was best known for his illustrations of

elegant young women and handsome men. As in this work, he often

portrayed his figures reclining in chairs or on sofas, engaged in

conversation. Mitchell’s work regularly appeared in various popular

publications, including Cosmopolitan, McCall’s, Redbook, Good

Housekeeping, Pictorial Review, The Delineator, The Saturday

Evening Post, Ladies’ Home Journal, and others. The artist was a

member of the Art Club in Philadelphia, where he also maintained his studio.

Wallace Morgan

American, 1875-1948

[Flapper Party], undated

Charcoal on paper


James Montgomery Flagg

American, 1877-1960

[New Year’s Eve Party], undated



James Montgomery Flagg’s career as an illustrator began

at the age of 12 when he sold drawings and cartoons to

St. Nicholas magazine. By the age of 15, he was a staff

artist for Life and Judge, two of America’s most popular publications. The artist was best known for

his political posters, notably his 1917 United States Army recruitment poster, which featured Uncle

Sam pointing his finger at the viewer with the words “I Want YOU For U.S. Army.” The poster was

exceedingly popular, with more than four million copies printed, and it was later revived for World War

II. Flagg created dozens of other patriotic posters during the war years, as well, subsequently

returning to magazine illustration.

The artist’s work appeared in McClure’s, Cosmopolitan, The Saturday Evening Post, Redbook,

Hearst's International, Liberty, Collier’s, Woman's Home Companion, Ladies’ Home Journal, The

American Weekly, and many other publications. He depicted a range of subject matter, including

beautiful women that portrayed the fashionable, ideal woman of the 20th century, much as Charles

Dana Gibson had with his signature “Gibson girl.” Flagg also produced cartoons and advertisements,

in addition to painting serious portraits throughout his career. This image may have illustrated “Uneasy

Street” by Arthur Somers Roche in the July 1919 issue of Cosmopolitan.


American, 1877-1960

[Four Women], undated



Joseph Christian Leyendecker


[The Jazz Age], advertisement for B. Kuppenheimer and Co.,

1928

Oil on canvas mounted on board


Charles Dana Gibson

American, 1867-1944

‘Advice to Radio Beginners—Do not become

discouraged at static trouble. It may not be

static at all, but merely trouble in the receiving

set.’ (aka Back to Back—Lover’s Quarrel),

illustration for Life, February 7, 1924




American, 1877-1960

Men’s Toggery, undated



Although Flagg was skilled in a range of mediums,

including watercolor, oil, and pencil, he was most

celebrated for his work in pen-and-ink. The artist

developed a unique approach of creating forms using carefully placed parallel lines, rather than

traditional cross-hatching.

Mort Künstler

American, b. 1931

Buried Alive for Four Months, illustration

for “Buried Alive for Four Months” by Richard

Gallagher, 1965

Gouache on board

Lent by the Artist

For five decades, Mort Künstler’s illustrations

have entertained and engaged the American public. Although now renowned as the “dean of

American history painting,” the artist spent the first 30 years of his career creating freelance

illustrations in a range of subject matter, including romance, adventure, and sports. His work appeared

in numerous books and magazines, including many popular publications like True, Argosy, Men’s

Story, Sports Afield, Outdoor Life, American Weekly, and The Saturday Evening Post, among others.

Künstler also produced advertisements and movie posters, most notably for the action film The

Poseidon Adventure. Buried Alive for Four Months was created for a Richard Gallagher story by the

same title that was published in Stag, a men’s adventure magazine featuring “true-life” fiction of daring

and exotic wartime exploits.

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