Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
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)
1910s Art Deco Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph
1910s Art Deco Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Offset
1910s Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Paper
1940s Expressionist Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Paper, Ink, Lithograph
1960s Pop Art Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph, Offset
1960s Pop Art Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph, Offset
1990s Pop Art Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Canvas, Offset
2010s Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Paper
2010s Art Nouveau Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Vellum, Lithograph
1990s Pop Art Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph, Offset
1980s Art Deco Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph
1970s Modern Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Paper, Etching
1980s Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Paper, Offset
1980s Pop Art Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph, Offset
1980s Art Deco Joseph Christian Leyendecker Prints and Multiples
Lithograph
