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Edward Penfield Wall Decorations

American, 1866-1925
One of the best of our native talents, Penfield is well-known for the decade 1891-1901, during which he was the art director of Harper's. For five of the ten years he produced posters for each month's issue of the then-popular magazine. His drawings are deceptively simple, with flat color and clear lines, but they always manage to convey class and refinement. And there's quite often a gentle touch of humor or irony, refreshing and frivolous. Penfield's posters are models of effective composition and economy of expression (Jack Rennert, PAI-XXVII, 555) When his tenure at Harper's came to an end, Penfield was free to travel, and his experiences are preserved in two books published by Scribner's, Holland Sketches (1907) and Spanish Sketches (1911), in which his graphic sense blossomed in a wealth of detail. The critic Royal Cortissoz commented: "When he made [these], he entered thoroughly into the spirit of his themes and did some of his best work... He was never the technical virtuoso alone. Humanity was always breaking into his world." - Frederic B. Taraba "We are a bit tired of the very serious nowadays, and a little frivolity is refreshing, and yet frivolity to be successful must be most thoroughly studied." So wrote EDWARD PENFIELD near the outset of his highly influential career as an illustrator, art editor, and poster artist, a career guided by keen observation, a cosmopolitan sensibility, and simplicity that belied his meticulously crafted efforts. In looking at the work of Penfield today, we find less of what strikes us as frivolous and more of a keen sense of design and composition. The Art Center Bulletin of April 1925 remembered his contribution to illustrative art this way: "To everything he produced Penfield brought his great gifts of design and draftsmanship, a wonderful sincerity that never faltered, and a beautiful humbleness of spirit." As early as 1894, just a year and a half after Penfield began a series of monthly images for Harper's , his work was heralded by Publisher's Weekly: "The advertising poster has within recent years actually soared into the regions of art." Penfield is also credited with bringing abstraction to commercial art through his boldly simplified shapes. This and other stylistic trademarks resulted from a distillation of a number of influences, including the compositional precepts and casual poses found in Japanese prints, the hand-craftsmanship of the Arts and Crafts movement, the impressionistic approach of Parisian poster-making, and British poise and directness.
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Creator: Edward Penfield
Edward Penfield Harper's April 1896 Stone Lithograph Poster
Edward Penfield Harper's April 1896 Stone Lithograph Poster

Edward Penfield Harper's April 1896 Stone Lithograph Poster

By Edward Penfield

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Edward Penfield (1866-1925) Stone Lithograph Art Nouveau Poster of The Harper's April 1896 Edition. Depicting, in characteristic beautiful color and line, a stylish couple in coats and hats. Size of image: 17 1/2" x 12 7/8". Size of paper: 17 1/2" x 12 7/8". Signed in the stone image. Condition: damages to surface due to having been folded, as tiny tear...

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Edward Penfield wall decorations for sale on 1stDibs.

Edward Penfield wall decorations are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of paper and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Edward Penfield wall decorations, although gray editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original wall decorations by Edward Penfield were created in the Art Nouveau style in united states during the 19th century. Prices for Edward Penfield wall decorations can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $695 and can go as high as $695, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $695.