Items Similar to The Sleuth By Joseph Christian Leyendecker
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 9
Joseph Christian LeyendeckerThe Sleuth By Joseph Christian LeyendeckerCirca 1906
Circa 1906
About the Item
Joseph Christian Leyendecker
1874-1951 | American
The Sleuth
Saturday Evening Post Cover, June 2, 1906
Signed "JCLeyendecker" (lower left)
Oil on canvas
A debonair sleuth peers through a stained glass window at the mysterious silhouette of a man in this captivating oil on canvas by great American illustrator J.C. Leyendecker. Painted for the June 2, 1906, cover of Saturday Evening Post, The Sleuth illustrates a scene from the story Mortmain by Arthur Train. An accomplished lawyer and writer, Train wrote dozens of thrilling legal stories about a fictional lawyer named Ephraim Tutt that were published in the Saturday Evening Post, and soon his heroic character became "the best-known lawyer in America." This striking cover art signaled another installment of Train’s Tutt chronicles printed within the magazine, a story that can still be accessed today.
Leyendecker’s masterful illustration encapsulates the intrigue of the story and showcases his renowned ability to capture the character of his models and convey a story through a single scene. His works such as this are as engaging today as they were over a century ago. Here, Leyendecker tells a compelling story through the inclusion of only a few compositional details. His debonair subject, Ephraim Tutt, appears in profile, connoting that he is turning to listen in on the conversation being had by the shadowy figure behind the stained glass window. Leyendecker renders Train’s Tutt figure in rich sartorial details, with a sumptuous cravat collar, bright orange gemstone tie pin and a luxurious mink-trimmed winter coat.
J. C. Leyendecker is credited for creating some of the most beloved and endearing images of his era that set the style and tone for entire generations of Americans. In 1898, Leyendecker produced the first of 48 covers for Collier’s magazine. The next year, he painted his first cover for Saturday Evening Post magazine, which was the beginning of a 44-year association with that esteemed publication. Over the course of his career, he would also paint covers for Life magazine, illustrations for a library of books and transform advertising for such companies as B. Kuppenheimer & Co. and Interwoven Socks. His remarkable and extensive oeuvre ensured his influence over an entire generation of young artists, most notably Norman Rockwell, who was vocal about the impact of Leyendecker on his work. Today, he remains one of the most beloved American illustrators of the early 20th century.
Circa 1906
Canvas: 17 3/4” high by 17 3/4” wide
Frame: 22" high by 22" wide by 1 3/4” deep
- Creator:Joseph Christian Leyendecker (1874 - 1951, American)
- Creation Year:Circa 1906
- Dimensions:Height: 22 in (55.88 cm)Width: 22 in (55.88 cm)Depth: 1.75 in (4.45 cm)
- Medium:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Gallery Location:New Orleans, LA
- Reference Number:
Joseph Christian Leyendecker
Joseph Christian "J.C." Leyendecker was born in Germany in 1874. He immigrated to the United States with his family in 1882. His eldest brother, Adolph, became a prominent stained glass artist, and Joe, as he was called, had an early artistic calling.
After studying at the Chicago Art Institute under John H. Vanderpoel, J.C. Leyendecker enrolled at the Académie Julien in 1896, where he studied for a year with his younger brother Frank in the Beaux-Arts tradition. During his time there, he was exposed to and influenced by the works of Art Nouveau painters and printmakers Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jules Chéret and Alphonse Mucha, with whom he formed a strong friendship. The next year, he staged his first one-man exhibition at the Salon du Champ-de-Mars and made the auspicious acquaintance of Paul Gauguin.
In 1898, Leyendecker produced the first of 48 covers for Collier’s magazine. The next year, he painted his first cover for The Saturday Evening Post magazine, which was the beginning of a 44-year association with that esteemed publication. Throughout his career, he would also paint covers for Life magazine, illustrations for a library of books, and transform advertising for such companies as B. Kuppenheimer & Co. and Interwoven Socks. His work for Arrow Shirt is the most well-known and beloved.
Using his lover and manager, Charles Beach, as a model, Leyendecker created the ultimate image of modern American masculinity. His work for Kuppenheimer, also known as the House of Kuppenheimer, is just as iconic. Founded in 1876, the company became the manufacturer of uniforms for the United States Army during World War I. Thanks to Leyendecker's advertising, the firm became synonymous with the ultimate in male taste and desirability.
Unfortunately, near the end of his career, as Leyendecker’s associations with Collier’s and The Saturday Evening Post came to an end, his work fell into obscurity. When he died in 1951, his great friend Norman Rockwell, who commemorated their relationship in his painting Waiting for the Art Editor, served as one of his pallbearers.
Find original J.C. Leyendecker prints and paintings on 1stDibs.
(Biography provided by M.S. Rau)
About the Seller
5.0
Vetted Seller
These experienced sellers undergo a comprehensive evaluation by our team of in-house experts.
Established in 1912
1stDibs seller since 2013
14 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 3 hours
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: New Orleans, LA
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
More From This SellerView All
- Egg Tapping On Easter Sunday By Hubert RitzenhofenLocated in New Orleans, LAHubert Ritzenhofen 1879-1961 German Egg Tapping on Easter Sunday Signed and dated "H. Ritzenhofen 05" (lower right) Oil on canvas This grand domestic tableau was painted by estee...Category
20th Century Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- L'odalisque à l'éventail (The Odalisque with the Fan)By Léon François ComerreLocated in New Orleans, LALéon François Comerre 1850-1916 French L'odalisque à l'éventail (The Odalisque with the Fan) Signed "Léon Comerre" (upper left) Oil on canvas Combinin...Category
Late 19th Century Academic Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Madonna Addolorata By SassoferratoBy Giovanni Battista Salvi da SassoferratoLocated in New Orleans, LASassoferrato (Giovanni Battista Salvi) 1609-1685 Italian Madonna Addolorata Oil on canvas Celebrated Italian artist Sassoferrato and his moving religious imagery are the epitome ...Category
17th Century Baroque Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Gum KidsBy Leslie ThrasherLocated in New Orleans, LATwo young children play an ill-advised game of gum stretching on the family couch in this charming composition by famed American illustrator, Leslie Thrasher. Painted towards the start of the Great Depression, Thrasher provided light-hearted images of the lives of everyday people to distract Americans from their troubles. These images appeared on the covers of Liberty Magazine, for whom he produced one cover illustration a week for six consecutive years. Born in 1889 in Piedmont, West Virginia, Thrasher studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts as a teenager and received a scholarship to study art abroad in Paris. Upon his return, he began studying under Howard Pyle, known as the “father of American illustration.” Thrasher sold his first cover illustration to the Saturday Evening Post in 1912, four years before Norman Rockwell’s first Post cover, and he would go on to produce over 360 magazine covers throughout his career. He painted humorous, relatable scenes of life in America with colorful characters set against white backgrounds. He was also a successful commercial artist, painting advertisements for Cream of Wheat, Chesterfield Cigarettes...Category
20th Century Other Art Style Figurative Paintings
MaterialsOil, Canvas
- Portrait of a Beauty by William Clarke WontnerBy William Clarke WontnerLocated in New Orleans, LAWilliam Clarke Wontner 1857-1930 British Portrait of a Beauty Signed and dated "W. Wontner 1918" (lower left) Oil on canvas Classical beauty a...Category
20th Century Portrait Paintings
MaterialsOil, Canvas
- The LetterBy Andrea LandiniLocated in New Orleans, LAA red-robed cardinal chuckles at the letter in his hand in this oil on canvas by the Italian painter Andrea Landini. The vibrantly hued piece illustrates the artist’s genius at rendering charming narratives in remarkable detail. Entitled The Letter, the work is a superb example of Landini's technical virtuosity — from the finely carved and upholstered chair to the neoclassical painting in the background, every detail is meticulously depicted. Such works satirizing the clergy would have been severely censured just a generation earlier. Yet, by the time Landini picked up the brush, the European public had grown discontent with the hypocrisy of the clergy, many of whom enjoyed lavish lifestyles. Cardinal paintings such as this became highly popular during the period, and Landini emerged alongside Georges Croegaert, Marcel Brunery and Jehan Georges Vibert as the leading painters of the genre. Born in Florence in 1847, Andrea Landini trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, first under the animal painter Riccardo Pasquini and later with religious painter Antonio Ciseri...Category
Late 19th Century Other Art Style Figurative Paintings
MaterialsOil, Canvas
You May Also Like
- Portrait of a Boy, John Closterman, Large English Portrait Art, Old MasterBy John ClostermanLocated in Greven, DEJohn Clostermann (Osnabrück 1660 - 1711 London) Portrait of a boy, maybe Charles Hinde Oil on canvas, 61 x 74,6 cm John Closterman (also Klosterman) was a portrait painter of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He primarily portrayed English noblemen and European aristocratic families. His father was already an artist and he trained his son. In 1679 he went to Paris and studied with Francois de Troy. In 1681 he was in London and worked for the artist John Riley, whose studio he took over after his death. In 1696 he was invited to the Spanish court...Category
17th Century Baroque Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Island of Broken Toys (diptych)Located in Burlingame, CA'Island of Broken Toys' 2019, a diptych contemporary oil on canvas painting by Tamera Avery, whose paintings are created with wit and wisdom. Avery's work...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCotton Canvas, Oil
- Oil Painting / Photorealism / Figurative Art / Human Figure /MuseumBy Bruce AdamsLocated in Buffalo, NYBruce Adams was a painter, art educator, and writer. Born in Buffalo, N.Y., in 1952, he received a B.S. in 1976 and an M.A. in 1983 from Buffalo State College. Adams’s work is includ...Category
1980s Contemporary Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Madonna and Child with Angels in the CloudsLocated in New York, NYProvenance: Charles H. and Virginia Baldwin, Claremont, Colorado Springs, Colorado ca. 1907-1934; thence by descent until sold in 1949 to: Charles Blevins Davis, Claremont (renamed Trianon), Colorado Springs 1949 -until gifted in 1952 to: The Poor Sisters of Saint Francis, Trianon, Colorado Springs, 1952 until acquired, 1960, by: John W. Metzger, Trianon, renamed as the Trianon School of Fine Arts, Colorado Springs, 1960-1967; when transferred to: The Metzger Family Foundation, Trianon Art Museum, Denver, 1967 - 2004; thence by descent in the Metzger Family until 2015 Exhibited: Trianon Art Museum, Denver (until 2004) The present work is a spectacular jewel-like canvas by Amigoni, rich in delicate pastel colors, most likely a modello for an altarpiece either lost or never painted. In it the Madonna stands firmly upon a cloud in the heavens, her Child resting on a delicate veil further supported by a cloud, as he gently wraps his arm around his mother’s neck. From above angels prepare to lower flowers and a wreath, while other angels and seraphim surrounding the two joyfully cavort. Dr. Annalisa Scarpa, author of the forthcoming monograph on Jacopo Amigoni...Category
18th Century and Earlier Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- Men portraitBy Giovanni Maria delle Piane dit Mulinaretto (Genoa 1670 - Monticelli d´Ongina 1745)Located in BELEYMAS, FRGiovanni Maria DELLE PIANE, known as IL MULINARETTO (Genoa, 1660 – Monticelli d'Ongina, 1745) Portrait of a man Oil on oval canvas H. 108 cm; L. 83 cm Provenance: Nino Ferrari Colle...Category
1730s Italian School Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
- 1950's French Oil Painting Portrait of Beautiful Young Lady La NapolitaineLocated in Cirencester, Gloucestershire'La Napolitaine' by Jean Gagnaud, French mid 20th century signed oil on canvas, framed framed: 20 x 18.5 inches canvas: 15 x 13 inches provenance: private collection, France conditio...Category
Mid-20th Century Modern Portrait Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Oil
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Wear Louis Comfort Tiffany’s Genius on Your Finger with This Vivid Ring
In his jewelry making, the designer rarely used diamonds — this rare example has two.
You Won’t Find a More Handsome Stopwatch Than This 1890s Pocket Chronograph
A Grand Complication from the golden era of pocket watches, the Marius Lecoultre pocket watch does everything but uncork your wine.