Joseph Christian Leyendecker: Illustrator

I have fallen in love with this guy’s stuff. Apparently, he was a real inspiration to Norman Rockwell – and you can totally tell when you look at more of his work.

I discovered him through this post on 100 Years of Illustration – with gorgeous images of commemorative stamps. The fourth one down really struck me, for some reason – so I followed his links and found a goldmine of beauty.

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9 Responses to Joseph Christian Leyendecker: Illustrator

  1. ricki says:

    Oh! How beautiful!

    How lovely it would be to live in that world. I know a lot of people who criticize this kind of work for being unrealistic and glossing over the hard parts of life, but as for me, I want a little gloss. I want a little something that makes me think we can be better and prettier and more nicely groomed than we actually are…sort of a Platonic ideal of real life.

  2. red says:

    I’ll join you in wanting to live in that world. :)

  3. red says:

    Your comment reminds me, ricki, that the most popular movies during the 1930s – when many people were down and out – were screwball comedies. We should never underestimate the healing properties of escape. We can suffer from too much reality. :) And gloss can help us escape – even if it’s just for a little while.

  4. Nightfly says:

    Amazing. I was just saying today at work that, if I were Emperor of New Jersey, I’d rule that all ads, from the typefaces to the logos and mascots, would be redone in the style of the 40’s and 50’s – with exceptions to be considered case by case. This stuff is why. (Although, the Saturday Evening Post of the girl kissing the caged cherub is… unsettling.)

    My favorite was #11. The one guy on the left is just out about the city with his cane and his natty attire, and — hey! naked goddess! The guy on the far right looks like he’s about to throw down with the cherub – total eye contact – who you hucking flowers at, kid? I’ll take you with one hand in my classic pleated pocket! Or else he’s looking at the first guy on the far left. They could be totally ignoring the mythological outbreak behind them… just waiting for the guy on the left to nod, once.

    In a way, it reminds me of the commercial for the sleep aid, where the guy’s waiting at the bus stop with his dreams, who miss him and want to see him again soon. (They can see him NOW, of course, but it’s not the same.) Abe Lincoln tells him the sleep aid isn’t habit-forming, and he should consult his doctor. It’s HONEST ABE telling you this, man – go to the bloomin’ doctor, already!

  5. red says:

    hahaha That is unsettling. However, I so want her dress!!

  6. Elizabeth says:

    Inspired Norman Rockwell? It looks more to me like Norman Rockwell cribbed half his work from this guy! Would Rockwell’s work be half as memorable today if he hadn’t completely plagiarized this guy’s style? I’m in shock….

  7. red says:

    Elizabeth – yeah, I was very struck by the similarity too!! Especially the girl smooching the cherub – that one really feels Rockwell-ish, to me.
    That’s one of the reasons why I love that site 100 years of illustration that I linked to – he’s really into that stuff.

    He did a whole post about people who either imitated Charles Dana Gibson – or who were precursors to Gibson – and sometimes it’s remarkable the similarity – but if you put it beside an actual Gibson, there’s no contest. – like Gibson copied their style, only he enhanced it, filled it out – and because he might have been a more talented artist – you can TOTALLY tell the difference. But the “Gibson Girl” was already “in the air”, if you will.

  8. tracey says:

    Sheila — Did you click on the link to his brother at the top of the page? He’s wonderful, too. I almost like him better; there’s almost a kind of wildness to his work. (Uhm, the one for the “Chevrolet Review”? I understand they’re “turning the wheel of progress,” but do they have to do it naked??)

    Scroll down to the piece called “A Live Wire.”

    I want that. So so bad.

  9. Carla Bradford says:

    Do you know of an artist with the initials of
    E B S who was an imitator of Charles Gibson?

    Have tried to find out on my own – have not done any good so far.

    Thanks

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