Pyle was considered the dean of American illustration. In 1894, he began teaching illus-tration at the Drexel Institute of Art, Science, and Industry (now Drexel University). He left there to open his own school, the Howard Pyle School of Illustration Art This was in Wilmington, Delaware where he had spent most of his life. Artists came from all over to be part of this studio. NC Wyeth was from Massachusetts, but gravitated to Pyle in Delaware. He sent Pyle a portfolio and was accepted. Pyle did not charge his students, but he only accepted the ones he felt were truly talented.He influenced so many artists, and told them "Throw your heart into the picture and then jump in after it."
Historians at that time were not sure what pirates actually looked like. In his many pirate books, he created their clothes straight from his imagination, giving them a style akin to gypsies. His works became so well known, that what Pyle painted is now what the general public thinks pirates looked like. The creators of “Pirates of the Caribbean” with Johnny Depp, acquired a number of his pirate illustrations and modeled the characters in the movie after them. Many of his pirates wore a big red sash and bandana, a style that was not from history, but manufactured by Pyle. In this painting the hat and the coat at the pirate’s feet are those of a naval officer. Probably garnered from a high seas skirmish.In his stories, there was a pirate’s code, which if broken brought on punishment. One possible punishment was, marooning. The pirate would be left on a desert island and given a knife or pistol with which to commit suicide. This poor sole hangs his head and contemplates his end. To see original: https://bit.ly/3Yduocp
Young Omahaw, War Eagle, Little Missouri and Pawnees - Charles Bird King
Inspired by - Charles Bird King - Young Omahaw, War Eagle, Little Missouri and Pawnees
Between 1820 and 1842 Charles King painted some 143 of the most famous paintings of American Indian chiefs. This was when they were still at the peak of their glory and reflected the full flowering of their people's culture. The portraits were commissioned by Thomas McKenney, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. King would paint the chiefs in his downtown studio, when they came to Washington to do business with the department.
Chief War Eagle wears a Jefferson Indian Peace Medal. This was a sign of great status for an Indian and worn at all formal events. Americans as well as Europeans gave out peace metals as far back as the 1600’s. The Jefferson Indian Peace Medal was the first medal to bear the image of an American president. Thomas Jefferson was depicted in profile on the obverse of the medal, with the inscription: "TH. JEFFERSON PRESIDENT OF THE U.S. A.D. 1801." The inscription on the reverse, "PEACE AND FRIENDSHIP," was symbolized by the image of clasped hands and a crossed tomahawk and peace pipe. Federal officials distributed medals when traveling through Indian territories. Lewis and Clark gave out about 87 metals on their expedition. In 1804, a dozen Osage chiefs arrived in Washington City. They were the first to make the long trip at the invitation of Captains Lewis and Clark. They were the first Native chiefs that Jefferson would meet and present with this metal. See original: bit.ly/3fXSerk
Thomas Eakins - Between Rounds
Inspired by: Thomas Eakins Between Rounds - 1898-99
Most of Eakins's sporting paintings: rowing, baseball and swimming are from the 1870’s and 80’s. But, he painted three boxing scenes in the late 90’s. These he began after attending professional matches at the Philadelphia Arena, then located diagonally across the street from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. He asked several of the participants to pose for him, along with his friends and family who portrayed officials and spectators. Here we find boxer “Turkey Point” Billy Smith in his corner. Billy lost more fights than he won, and in the depicted bout he was knocked out in the third round.
Eakins sports paintings frequently expressed the muscular system of the nude male. He stands as the first American artist to base his art on the close and exacting analysis of the body. He felt it so important that he even studied anatomy at Jefferson Medical College. He began teaching at PAFA (his almamater) in 1876, While there, discontent arose concerning his teaching methods, His insistence on the study of the nude in mixed-sex classes and his frequent use of pupils as models did not please Victorian Philadelphia. While lecturing about the pelvis to a class that included female students, Eakins removed a loincloth from a male model so that he could trace the course of a muscle. Angry protests by parents and students forced him to resign at the request of the Academy board. To see original: https://bit.ly/3z6ufh4
Grant Wood – American Gothic
Inspired by Grant Wood – American Gothic – 1930
Wood's inspiration came from what is now known as the American Gothic House, and his decision to paint the house along with "the kind of people I fancied should live in that house." When asked what, American Gothic was about, Wood often said that it was really about architecture. The house seemed to him typically American. He found the house in Eldon, Iowa and made several sketches. In the painting the pitch fork and the shirt connect us to the lines of the building behind. The pattern on the woman’s dress relates to the shades in the window. The elongated faces of the models go with the elongated windows.
The figures were modeled by Wood's sister, Nan Wood Graham, and his dentist, Dr. Byron McKeeby. Wood’s first choice for a female model was his mother, Hattie. However, he was concerned that posing at length would be too much for her. So, in her stead his sister Nan sat in. Nan, was embarrassed at being depicted as the wife of someone twice her age - and began telling people that the painting was of a man and his daughter.
The painting came to be seen in the Great Depression as a depiction of steadfast American pioneer spirit. Wood was quoted as saying, "All the good ideas I've ever had came to me while I was milking a cow." Wood entered his painting in a competition at the Art Institute of Chicago. It received the bronze medal and a $300 cash prize. As the painting gained attention it was reproduced in newspapers. Iowans were furious at their depiction. One farm-wife threatened to bite Wood's ear off. To that Wood said, He didn't paint a caricature of Iowans but rather “a depiction of Americans”.
