22. A History of Illustration (1800

August 01, 2022

22. A History of Illustration (1800 – The Present)

“Fine art is sold in a Fine Art gallery. That is its definition. If illustration gets sold in a gallery it becomes fine art.” – Kev Ferrera

“Most artists couldn’t hack it as illustrators.” – Tristan Elwell

What was it about? What were the goals?

An illustration is a decoration or visual explanation meant to promote a product or idea. It could be for an environmental campaign, a political poster, a book or film, or a new pair of shoes. There are many specialties and specialists in illustration. One can focus on botanical, medical, or other scientific illustrations, technical designs, or commercial arts like fashion, advertising, and so on.

A big new field is “concept art” (not to be confused with Conceptual Art). Concept artists create original ideas for story elements in films, TV shows, and video games. They wrestle with how to create an entire world for a story that feels realistic, unique, compelling, and memorable. They invent architecture, costumes, hair styles, vehicles, weapons, and even aliens and monsters.

A bit of historical context:

Illustration goes all the way back to medieval times when monks painted decorative illuminations in books worth more than their weight in gold. The link between books and illustration continued through the ages as printmaking technologies improved. Many of the best illustrators were printmakers, specializing in engraving, etching, lithography and so on, to mass produce pictures included in stories.

Illustration grew in popularity in the 19th century, especially with new magazines dedicated to humour, like Punch in England, which coined the term “cartoon”, and employed the first cartoonist, John Leech. The growth in technology allowed for colour illustrations and advertisements, so that they were expected everywhere – in books, newspapers, magazines, and posters. It became big business, and some illustrators became incredibly wealthy during the Golden Age of Illustration, lasting roughly from 1880-1930. They were famous celebrities, lived in mansions, and lived only off their painting.

The underlying philosophy of the period:

Illustration took a lot of abuse in the 20th century. The irony is that, at this time, illustration produced some of the greatest artworks and yet, due to new ideas, definitions, and requirements for art, most of the major institutions refused to accept or promote it. Only recently has society begun to respect illustration, sometimes even labelling it art. Not everyone agrees. Illustrator Robert Weaver once said:

“Until the illustrator enjoys complete independence from outside pressure and direction, complete responsibility for his own work, and complete freedom to do whatever he deems fit––all necessaries in the making of art––then illustration cannot be art but only a branch of advertising.”

Of course, this is wrong. What fine artist is completely free to do what he or she wants? How was this ever necessary for making art? And doesn’t fine art also advertise ideas of one kind or another?

Still, an illustrator agrees to draw or paint what another dictates, for a set price, on a set date, and this arrangement has been mischaracterized as ingenuine, unimaginative, and ignoble. In reality, nothing could be farther than the truth, at least for the great illustrators of the age. Their ability to hold themselves to high standards, to collaborate as equals, and bring their own ideas to the table has enhanced countless stories, films, and even commercial products. The nostalgia people associate with Coca-Cola has more to do with illustrator Haddon Sundblom than how it tastes:

Christmas Advertisement for Coca-Cola, by Haddon Sundblom, 1952

A second criticism is that works like this aren’t deep. There’s nothing profound or even honest about a children’s fairytale character like Santa Claus advertising a sugary soda that ruins kid’s teeth. And, how many kids really want Coca-Cola under the Christmas tree? To that I say, first, Sundblom does not represent the fullest extent of illustrative power to raise questions––that wasn’t his goal. Other illustrators have been extremely profound, as you’ll see below. But, where Sundblom succeeded is in the fact that... I don’t give a damn about Coke, and yet... I love the way his Santa’s always smile and wink at me. There’s a role-model in there somewhere about how to convey joy and confidence, even among strangers, and of the importance of optimism in our frightening world, regardless of whether or not he’s holding a Coke bottle. The product is irrelevant to the real message. It could be anything in his hand. What Sundblom was really selling was the notion of kindness and hope––not so ignoble after all.

Was it great?

Absolutely. You might not imagine an ad for dress shirts being particularly exciting, but then you see a Leyendecker painting, and you have to laugh, because you still don’t give a damn about the shirt... but that painting! The brush strokes! The gestural lines! The color relationships! The reflections! The broken forms! How did he do that?!

Detail for a clothing advertisement, most likely for Arrow shirts, by J. C. Leyendecker

It’s not merely a matter of technical skill, but the overall effect. And that’s just in an ad for dress shirts! Illustrators created all manner of dramatic imagery in detective stories, thrillers, science fiction, etc. It reminds you of the drama of Renaissance art, only with modern themes.

Some leading figures:

John Audobon (1785-1851)

George Cruikshank (1792-1878)

Honoré Daumier (1808-1879)

Hablot Knight Browne (1815-1882)

John Leech (1817-1864)

Gustave Doré (1832-1883)

Howard Pyle (1853-1911)

Alphonse Mucha (1860-1939

Arthur Rackham (1867-1939)

Charles Dana Gibson (1867-1944)

Maxfield Parrish (1870-1966)