Edwin Austin Abbey submitted pen and ink drawings to Harper & Brothers for two years before they bought one. That lead to 18 year-old Abbey joining Harper’s art department to work on Harper’s Weekly and Harper’s The Monthly Magazine. Abbey quickly established himself as a masterful pen and ink artist. He soon left Harper’s to […]
When Men Wore Hats. Seriously.
January 7, 2019 by
When guys really wore hats, before J.F.K. made them passe with his hatless public appearances, men wore them everywhere. Sporty hats, formal hats, top hats, caps, berets. While western hats (a.k.a. Cowboy Hats) are still popular in places today., (except for self-styled hipsters) the urban male has generally forsaken the topper. Maybe the nostalgic look […]
Leslie Saalburg | Dapper Dandies
December 31, 2018 by
Nobody epitomized quality men’s fashion back in the 1930s like Esquire Magazine and the artists who graced it’s pages with their illustrations. Names like Robert Goodman, George Hughes, Laurence Fellows and Leslie Saalburg rendered the latest in sartorial splendor for readers. Saalburg was probably the most prolific and also churned out advertising art for the […]
The Gentle Humor of Alajalov
December 24, 2018 by
Constantin Alajalov was a cartoonist who amused readers for decades with his humorous magazine covers that depicted everyday slice-of-life situations. He was born in Rostov, Russia and immigrated to the U.S. in 1923. He began doing odd jobs including painting a mural for a restaurant in New York city. His big break came when a […]
More of John Gallagher’s Cartoons
December 17, 2018 by
After my last post, I realized I had a bunch more of John Gallagher’s cartoons I wanted to share. Here’s another collection with more to come in the future.
A Salute to John Gallagher, gag cartoonist
December 10, 2018 by
When I was a young teenager, I had dreams of being a gag cartoonist for the magazines. I remember leafing through old periodicals our neighbors were throwing out: The Saturday Evening Post, Collier’s, True, Look and others from the glorious 1950s, the golden age of the one panel cartoon. There were dozens of names I […]
The Art of Cakes and Pies: Famous Illustrators
December 3, 2018 by
Famous illustrators rendered mouth-watering art of cake and pies in glorious color. In the early part of the last century, almost all food advertising had to use art work, not photography. Color photography produced dark images that were not suitable for the printed page. Hams, canned vegetables and fruits and especially baked goods were illustrated […]
James Williamson: The Second Arrow Shirt Man
November 26, 2018 by
Everyone remembers Joseph Leyendecker’s square-jawed Arrow Shirt Man. He was an American icon through the Roaring Twenties. Leyendecker’s illustrations became a distinctive image representing the country’s prosperous Jazz Age. However, with American economy in the midst of the Great Depression in the early 30s, manufacturer Cluett Peabody began a new ad campaign for Arrow based […]
Decorative Food Art of Rene Clarke
November 16, 2018 by
Nobody drew and painted food like Rene Clarke. He joined the advertising firm of Caulkins and Holden in 1912, where he remained for 44 years. He became Art Director and served the last 7 years as President. While his given name was James Alfred Clarke, he admired a French artist by the name of Rene […]
Before Roland and Sylvester: William Steig’s Early Cartoons
November 2, 2018 by
Today we mainly think of William Steig as an award -winning author/illustrator of children’s picture books. He was the creator of Shrek, Sylvester, Roland, Doctor De Soto and so many more popular and memorable characters. But Steig was 61 when his first children’s book was published. Before that he had a very successful career as […]
