The Storybook Style

"The world of book illustration in America has been changing its face for the better during the last thirty years," wrote Henry C. Pitz in the December 1959 issue of American Artist magazine.


"Shouldered aside by the noisier worlds of magazine and advertising illustration, the book illustrators and designers have been given little heed by the critics and writers, but they have brought about an unheralded revolution."


Pitz is correct that the styles being developed by the book illustrators of the 50's were revolutionary... and occasionally, when art directors and clients were feeling particulary bold, the magazine and advertising world even co-opted those style .

Ultimately, the storybook styles would have such a profound effect on a generation of young artists that they may well represent the single most powerful stylistic influence on the face of modern day illustration.


This week, let's look at the early days of the storybook style in book, magazine and advertising art.

My Ads with Storybook Styles Flickr set.