Al Parker: "His design inventions seem to be inexhaustible."

The January 1952 issue of American Artist magazine contains "a demonstration presented courtesy of the Famous Artists Course, Westport, Connecticut." The accompanying commentary is provided by Henry C. Pitz:

"The quality most of [Parker's] followers reach for is his most obvious one - his visual impact. His pictures always greet the eye with pleasant excitement and perennial freshness; his design inventions seem to be inexhaustible."


"Al Parker will probably escape the fate of many who have become first the beneficiaries and then the victims of a vogue. He has grown with the years and he has many new things to say. His experiments with pure line are indications of what might be an entirely new Parker school."











Continued tomorrow...

* the Modern Graphic History Library at Washington University in St. Louis is currently hosting an Al Parker exhibit, Double Exposure: Al Parker’s Illustrations, from Model to Magazine. which "explores the art-making process of magazine illustrator Al Parker. The display features original artwork and tear sheets from popular magazines published in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. The illustrations are presented alongside photographic studies taken by Parker, depicting women, men, and children from various viewpoints and poses. Through the juxtaposition of these images, we catch a glimpse of Parker's creative process, from his compositions captured in photos to his interpretations realized in print."

The exhibit runs from July 6th to September 29th, 2009 at the Olin Library, Washington University in St. Louis

* Many thanks to Marvin Friedman for the gift of Al Parker tear sheets from which the image at the top of this post is scanned.

* My Al Parker Flickr set.