Henry Patrick Raleigh- Serious Drawing Skills

Just in time for Christmas, Auad Publishing has unveiled a new book that would make Jay Gatsby drool. In keeping with the long tradition of fantastic books from Manuel Auad, comes Henry Patrick Raleigh-The Confident Illustrator.

  

This coffee table worthy volume is printed in glorious full color despite the fact that much of Raleigh's work was black and white or limited in it's color range. The extra touch of full color throughout lends nuance and depth to each of Raleigh's monochromatic pieces.

But the star here is Raleigh's unbelievable skill as a draftsman and storyteller. And boy could this guy draw! His characters pop to life with just enough stylization to be animated without dropping into the caricature zone. His confident line and deft use of value pattern makes each illustration in the volume study worthy. No detail is overlooked from the costumes to the furniture to the automobiles. Raliegh's art is a master class in telling just enough and telling it with flair. Lines jump off the page and exude confidence. No wonder he earned the nickname "The Confident Illustrator".

The text of the book is nicely written by Raleigh's own grandson Christopher and reading it, you get a wonderful glimpse into an era when illustrators were rock stars and paid accordingly. Raleigh reportedly was paid $200-$300 per quick spot drawing and as much as $3500 per color piece throughout the 1920's and 1930's. It is estimated that he produced some 20,000 works, or an average of around 800 illustrations per year over the first 25 years of his career. He worked quickly, sometimes spending under an hour on a spot drawing or possibly a few days on a larger piece which facilitated the completion of so many works.

If you do the math, 800 illustrations in 1930, even at an average of just $300, calculates to nearly $3.5 million in today's dollars. Raleigh was a wealthy man and his spending habits bore this out. He loved rubbing elbows with the rich and famous where he arrived at lavish parties in custom tailored suits while driving expensive cars. Despite his incredibly prolific output of work, Raliegh often traveled abroad for upwards of three to four months of the year, making his productivity even more amazing.

The book is divided into sections like The Gatsby Era, Advertising (He did Maxwell House coffee ads for years), Lithographs and Etchings (featuring the famous posters Raleigh did for World War I war bonds)The Authors (including illustrations he created for serialized stories from such notables as F. Scott Fitzgerald and H.G. Wells).

This hardback book with full  color dust jacket (featuring an alternate image) is beautifully reproduced. I would rank the print quality right up there with any high caliber art book in my collection. Also included are a couple of nicely done gatefold reproductions and a nice 9"x12" full color print is tucked into the flyleaf.

If you are an illustration junkie like me, this volume is a must have for your library. Auad Publishing's titles nearly all sell out and past titles can be hard to find and expensive. His previous books on Robert Fawcett and Albert Dorne are sold out and online prices for those tomes are now way out of my price range. I'm happy to own them already. If you are thinking about getting this new one, I suggest not waiting around too long.

Buy Henry Patrick Raleigh here
and also:
Al Parker is momentarily on sale from Auad for a ridiculous price of $20

Master Illustrator Copy

My version of a J.C. Leyendecker

Making copies of  master paintings is a tradition that goes back centuries. Many museums even today allow students and artists to set up in the gallery and study the techniques of master painters by copying their works. This process allows an artist to break down color, stroke and layers to understand why a painting is successful without all the decision making that went into the creation of the original, thus speeding up the learning process (hopefully). For my Illustration 1 classes this semester, I decided to do a couple of master illustrator copies as demonstrations. Most of my students do not yet have extensive painting experience and this demo served to help them understand basic principles of painting as well as to talk about some basics of design. It was interesting to dissect another artist's technique and understand why a particular painting really works.

Detail of the Leyendecker original that I copied

I chose a nice painting by one of my all time favorite illustrators J.C. Leyendecker. I have long been a fan of his stylized depictions of the human figure as well as of his economy of stroke. I spent about a half an hour each on the two faces (one in each class) and then another hour and a half to two hours in the studio finishing things up. The main differences between mine and the great J.C.'s pieces are that he painted in oil and much larger. My version is in acrylic gouache (Holbein's Acryla brand) and only about 7" x 10". My under painting was also a bit more ochre giving the colors a slightly warmer cast overall. I began the exercise thinking I had a pretty good idea of what makes Leyendecker's work so effective and appealing but after careful study, I came away with a whole new appreciation for his brilliant picture construction. This is an interesting and useful exercise I would recommend every artist do once in a while. I totally enjoyed the process.

More Walter Everett

Walter Everett- couple on hillside (unfinished?)

Last week I got an email from artist Kevin Ferrara regarding a previous post I did on the work of Golden Age Illustrator Walter Everett (1880-1946). 

As a result, we happily traded Walter Everett scans which were new to both of us. This exchange motivated me to have another look at Everett's work and I came away with a renewed appreciation of his skill. I continue to be especially impressed by his design sense, bold brushwork and color use. 

Washer Woman- finished painting

Sketch for the above painting- notice design differences from finish

A student of Howard Pyle, during the first quarter of the 20th century, Everett established himself as one of the most sought after illustrators. He founded  the program at the Philadelphia College of Art (formerly the School of Industrial Arts) in1911 where he taught until the conformity of academia chafed too much. He abandoned teaching in 1915. 

His ego and tendency to push deadlines to the last possible moment or beyond, made him an art director's nightmare. But Everett's brilliant work made him a headache that publishers were obviously willing to tolerate as his work continued to appear in all the major publications of the day.

At the height of his career in the mid 1930's, Everett famously burned the bulk of his life's work to ash according to several accounts including this post on David Apatoff"s Illustration Art blog. He then disappeared from illustration forever. nobody seems to know why.

Walter Everett spent the rest of his life creating personal work such as the one below which was on his easel at the time of his death in 1946

Very little remains by way of Everett's original art and tear sheets of his printed work. I would love to find more examples, but for now I'll be satisfied with digesting the samples I have. If you have any scans of Everett's work that may be more obscure and that you are willing to share, I would appreciate it.

Walter Everett was one of the most talented of the Golden Age of Illustration, giving nothing to the likes of Dean Cornwell, N.C. Wyeth, Harvey Dunn. He was certainly one of the very best from an era of illustration giants.

See more brilliant Walter Everett work here

Influenced by the Best

"Thunderbird" -Sunset magazine "cover"

Oil on canvas, 18" x 24" by Greg Newbold

Whether we want to admit it or not. All artists are influenced by what they see. Whether it's our surroundings, the things we like, photography or the work of other artists, we seek out and internalize the visual material that resonates emotionally within us. During my MFA journey at the University of Hartford, we were given the assignment to create a magazine cover in the style of a Golden Age Illustrator. I of course immediately wanted to pay tribute to one of my favorites, N.C. Wyeth.

The 1914 Dixon cover that inspired me

While researching possible magazines in which to insert my painting, I thought o the several magazine covers created by another of my favorite painters, Maynard Dixon. I figured why not pay homage to both artists at once. I found a grainy photo of Maynard Dixon that gave me enough information to start from and with the addition of a palette and brush, I created a heroic view of Dixon painting in a landscape much like the ones he loved to paint.

Giant in the Clouds- by N.C. Wyeth

I tried to create the scene with the design, color and brushwork  sensibilities of Wyeth, especially the clouds and the way that the figure drops off into mostly shadow. In the end, I think it also shows  quite a bit of the influence both artists have had on my own work.

41 Illustrators and How They Worked

The highly anticipated release of Masters of American Illustration- 41 Illustrators and How They Worked has finally come. I have been waiting for a volume like this since I stumbled upon a similar book from the 1940's titled 40 Illustrators and How They Worked which I profiled in an earlier post.

This volume by Illustration historian Fred Taraba and published by The Illustrated Press compiles twelve years worth of his popular Golden Age Illustrator profiles titled "Methods of the Masters"  from Step By Step Magazine. This book is massive at 432 pages and the 9" x 12" page format allows plenty of room to enjoy the copious full color reproductions.

The text is informative and insightful without getting overly wordy. Taraba allows the pictures to speak for themselves and speak they do. Many of the profiles show preliminary sketches as well as the reference photos used in the process of each artist.

Plenty has already been written about luminaries such as N.C. Wyeth, Norman, Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish, Howard Pyle and the like, so they are not covered here, but those familiar with early  and mid 20th century illustration will find plenty of artists they recognize such as Franklin Booth, Austin Briggs, Pruett Carter, Jon Whitcomb and Coby Whitmore. There are also features on other artists that though largely forgotten, are no less worthy of coverage. I look forward to enjoying my copy for years to come and highly recommend it to any artist or fan of American Illustration.

Buy your copy of 41 Illustrators and How They Worked

Frank Schoonover's Studio

The Schoonover Studio - 1616 North Rodney Street, 

Wilmington, Delaware

In the summer of 2009 I had the pleasure of visiting several iconic illustrator's studios including N.C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle. The last stop on the studio tour was Frank Schoonover's studio on Rodney street in Wilmington Delaware.

Frank Schoonover at the easel

The studio was established by students of Howard Pyle when space at Pyle's Franklin street location grew inadequate. Frank Schoonover and Stanley Arthurs joined forces to secure funding on a new studio building that included four working spaces.

Schoonover and Arthurs moved in on March 8, 1906. Fellow illustrators N.C. Wyeth, Henry Peck, Clifford Ashley and Harvey Dunn would soon follow. Schoonover eventually purchased the building and worked there for the remainder of his long career.

Grandson John Schoonover poses in front of some of Frank's artifacts

Now owned and curated by grandson John Schoonover, The building still functions as a working studio as well as a gallery and museum of Frank Schoonover's work and artifacts. John was gracious enough to give us a tour on almost no notice after we left the Howard Pyle Studio earlier that morning. I got an email earlier today announcing the launch of a new Schoonover studio website. Check it out and if you are ever in the Wilmington Delaware area, call John and make a visit to The Schoonover Studio.

More info at the new Schoonover Studios Website
A great Frank Schoonover book available here
Schoonover bio by Jim Vadeboncoeur here

Howard Pyle's Studio

Howard Pyle studio- Wilmington, Delaware

In the summer of 2009 I had the privilege of visiting the studio that Howard Pyle, widely regarded as the father of American illustration, built and worked in. In 1883 Pyle bought a lot on Franklin Street in Wilmington Delaware and constructed what would become a Mecca of sorts for artists wishing to hone their skills under the tutelage of Pyle.

Pyle Studio circa 1906

Acclaimed artists that studied in the shadow of Pyle include N.C. Wyeth, Frank Schoonover, Harvey Dunn and Jessie Wilcox Smith. During my cross country trip to Hartford to attend my final summer MFA session, Ron Spears and I arrived unannounced, but were graciously given a tour by current caretaker and occupant, artist Carolyn Anderson.

Stepping into the Pyle studio , one could sense the history and imagine  the many late night lectures and critiques that took place there and in the adjoining studio space that Pyle constructed to accommodate his top students. Pyle was a consummate craftsman and teacher with a penchant for storytelling and hyperbole. On more than one occasion, Pyle stressed the importance of getting inside your work, breathing life into it. "When I was painting this picture of a battle'" he once told a class of students, referring to his painting The Battle of Nashville, " I felt the reality so vividly that I occasionally had to go to the door of the studio and breathe fresh air to clear my lungs of powder and smoke!"

Main room inside the Howard Pyle studio

Student Frank Schoonover once recalled visiting the master one evening in which he was painting "The Battle of Bunker Hill". The painting seemed nearly finished but when he and Stanley Arthurs returned the next day, they were shocked to see a new canvas with a different composition on the easel. He asked what had happened and Pyle replied that he had taken the canvas to the boiler room and burned it because he "couldn't smell the smoke". He then reinforced that "You have to smell the smoke." Good advice to this day. If you happen to be in the Wilmington area, swing by the Pyle Studio on Franklin Street between Thirteenth Street and Delaware Avenue. Then go to the Delaware Art Museum and see the largest public collection of Pyle work in existence. You won't be disappointed.

Moonlight Ambush

Moonlight Ambush - Acrylic on canvas, 15" x 12"

The soldiers of the American Revolution were not ones to surrender. A few years back I had a fun assignment for Boys' Life magazine to illustrate a historical fiction piece in which a main character gets taken hostage by the British Redcoats. In a brave midnight ambush, his fellow countrymen storm the farm where he is being held captive and rescue him. In this piece I wanted to give a bit of an homage to a couple of my favorite Golden Age illustrators who were both masters of dramatic historical subject matter- Howard Pyle and N.C. Wyeth. Any similarity to their iconic work is purely intentional.

Like Father Like Son

Indian Ambush- sketch by Andrew Wyeth

Years ago I came upon a copy of the October 1965 issue of American Heritage that contained an essay and portfolio on the work of illustration giant N.C. Wyeth. On the last page, son Andrew who's fame and accomplishment as an artist would eventually eclipse that of his father recounted his informal art lectures at the feet of N.C..

Such instruction  was typically general such as describing "the quality of folds in a drapery and the way light comes across it. But once young Andy was drawing an Indian ambush (see above) and his father showed him what was wrong: the [natives] had taken over the entire picture, obscuring the mounted soldier whose danger was the point of the drawing. In a quick pencil sketch (see below) the elder Wyeth brought the imperilled rider more to the foreground and hid his attackers behind the trees.

Revised Indian Ambush sketch by N.C. Wyeth

Of his father N.C, Andrew said "we had a remarkable friendship, of course he was my only teacher, and he was a wonderful, remarkable person. When he died, I was just a clever watercolorist- lots of swish and swash. When he died- well- now I was really on the spot and had this terrific urge to prove that what he started in me was not in vain." 

It is evident in this rough sketch the level of skill N.C. possessed as he so easily corrected the flawed composition. The fact that the drawing survived is proof of this lesson's impact on his son. Andrew learned well and, I think through him and grandson Jamie, the Wyeth tradition turned out just fine .

New Harvey Dunn Book

The Prairie is My Garden- By Harvey Dunn

One of my favorite things about Christmas is that if I don't get exactly what I want, I can still hope to get it a few days later on my birthday. That's what happened this week when I opened up the new over sized volume on the work of Harvey Dunn written by Illustration House founder Walt Reed. This long awaited tome does not disappoint.

Harvey Dunn - Illustrator and Painter of the Pioneer West is a fitting tribute to the artistic legacy of  Dunn, arguably the most influential of all the artists who studied under Howard Pyle. Dunn studied for two years under Pyle and went on to notoriety in his own work but also became a great teacher. He is known  mainly for his depictions of prairie life on the American frontier, though his career range of subject matter was broad and deep.

Harvey Dunn's artistic descendants include John Steuart Curry, Dean Cornwell, Harold Von Schmidt, Saul Tepper, Mead Schaeffer,Mario Cooper, Arnold Friberg, John Clymer, Ken Riley and the list goes on. This book represents the largest collection of Dunn's work ever assembled and color reproductions abound, with most of the surviving paintings being newly photographed for this volume. Reproductions of original magazine pages fill in the holes where the actual art has been lost..

The Calf Path- circa 1912 by Harvey Dunn

At 10" x 13" this book has space to show off the juicy brush strokes, incredible compositions and the enviable value and color control of Dunn's paintings. I found myself lingering over all the works I had seen previously as well as discovering for the first time, dozens of paintings I had never seen before. The book also contains a section profiling many of Dunn's most successful students as well as a facsimile of a booklet long out of print called "An Evening in the Classroom." This section is a treat in it's own right as it collects from classroom notes much of Dunn's considerable wisdom and advice on the art of picture making. I am currently reading the book from cover to cover and look forward to being inspired by the work of Harvey Dunn for a long time to come.

The Harvey Dunn book is available through Flesk Publications