Howard Terpning, Advertising Illustrator

The biography at swoyersart.com tells us that Howard Terpning began his commercial art career in Chicago as a member of the famous "Sundblom Circle." This early sample by Terpning certainly suggests he was learning his painting technique from Haddon Sundblom (creator of the famous Coca-Cola Santa Claus).



After finishing his apprenticeship with Sunny, Terpning "moved to Milwaukee, where for three years he painted such subjects as farmers on tractors." Feeling he was finally ready to try his luck in the illustration mecca of New York, he signed on with Stephens, Biondi, De Cicco - the same art studio for whom Lucia Larner worked. Terpning spent five years perfecting his painting technique on mostly advertising art assignments.



Although it's not mentioned in any of the online biographies I read, I have it on good authority that Terpning's next studio was Fredman-Chaite, another New York art studio I presented many posts about just a couple of months ago.

Since we don't have an accurate chronology of this period in Howard Terpning's career, the 1959 ad below may have been done while he was at either SBD or F/C.



Only the barely visible initialed "H.T." verifies that this Orange Crush ad is Howard Terpning's work...




... but that same year (1960) in an ad for McGregor men's fashions, you can see Terpning beginning to explore the distinctive, energetic painting style for which he became known and was much sought-after by clients for the next decade.





Here, for your enjoyment and inspiration, are some more 1960s advertising illustrations by Howard Terpning:



(Worth noting: Terpning seemed to have inherited the Dobbs Hats account from Bob Peak, another Fredman-Chaite Studio member)



Just look at all the dynamic painting details in the background elements of this ad!



Two from 1967...





... and a whole series which I'm guessing are from around 1970.









Now scroll back to the top and marvel at how Terpning's style evolved!


* Thanks to Harold Henriksen and Aron Gagliano of the American Academy of Art for providing most of today's scans.

Howard Terpning was a student at the AAA in Chicago during his early days before his apprenticeship with Haddon Sundblom. He was the academy's distinguished alum at graduation in 2010. Aron had a chance to meet him in person and says, "Spending time with the Terpning’s (Howard and Marlies) was just fantastic. I don’t think I’ve ever met a more gracious couple. All around inspiring people in every way."

"While Terpning was at the Academy we had a local news channel come in and do a piece on him:"

Artist Howard Terpning | Chicago Tonight | WTTW

Aron also shared a link to the trailer for a recent Howard Terpning documentary, “Portrait of a storyteller,”:

Howard Terpning, Magazine Illustrator

Today most people think of Howard Terpning as one of America's premier western art painters. Terpning's prints and paintings can be seen at various art gallery websites... his originals have sold for over a million dollars. But long before his success as a cowboy painter, Howard Terpning was one of the best of the mid-century magazine illustrators.



Terpning had a distinctive painting style that I find very exciting and attractive. It must have appealed to magazine art directors of the time as well... Terpning's work appeared regularly in many popular magazines during his time working in New York in the 1960s.



SwoyersArt.com has a very thorough biography of Terpning, which makes for interesting reading - I encourage you to take a look.



As I continue to focus on my summer plein air painting, I'll just share some early Terpning artwork with you and keep the words to a minimum. Enjoy!







* My thanks to Harold Henriksen for providing many of today's scans!

A Last Thought on Landscape Painting

I'm off to fish (and paint) up North for the next few days -- have a great weekend, everyone!

Hardy Gramatky, Landscape Painter

If you recognize the name Hardy Gramatky at all, it's probably in conjunction with the children's book character "Little Toot," which Gramatky wrote and illustrated in the late 1930s.



But Hardy Gramatky was also a fantastic landscape painter.



Beginning in his early days in art school (where he studied under the famous magazine illustrator Pruett Carter), Gramatky became so engaged in landscape painting that he typically produced five small paintings a day for a period of three years.





Gramatky's daughter, Linda Gramatky Smith, points out that "Part of what made my dad so unusual [is] so often there's something happening in my dad's paintings. It's not just a scene -- there's something going on there."





In the 1930s Gramatky worked for Disney Studios in California as a head animator. He then moved to New York and pursued a career as a book and magazine illustrator. He created work for many leading magazines like Fortune, Collier’s, Woman’s Day, True, American and Readers Digest and for advertisers, including the piece below from a 1959/1960 New England Mutual Life Insurance ad campaign.



Linda Gramatky Smith has put together a wonderful website in tribute to her father (and her mother, who was also an illustrator). Be sure to click on the many thumbnails to enjoy more examples of Gramatky's stunning work.

There is also a long and enjoyable biography - look for it in the website menu under "His Story"

Denver Gillen, Landscape Painter

Denver Gillen is another mid-century illustrator whose work I have always admired. Gillen often incorporated compelling, atmospheric and distinctively stylized landscapes in his illustrations.







Gillen was a favourite of sport fishing and hunting magazine editors, creating many interior illustrations and covers.



Because Gillen himself had no interest in hunting, he consciously focused on the grace and nobility of the animals in his illustrations...



... and of course, looking beyond the subject matter, we see once again Gillen's beautifully realized landscapes.



Other artists might find tricks or shortcuts to represent the background landscape in their work as a symbolic prop. But even when creating textbook illustrations like the one below (which Gillen's daughter told me he found tedious to do) he cut no corners.



Later in his life, after moving to Mexico to semi-retire, Gillen created remarkable gallery paintings celebrating the people and landscapes of his adopted home.

James R. Bingham, Landscape Painter

I just returned from a week of plein air painting in Northern Ontario so landscapes are very much on my mind. I hope you'll indulge me while I continue with this theme, as it's what currently is really inspiring my own creative efforts!

Many of the great mid-century illustrators had a real knack for painting landscapes, even if it was in service to an advertising campaign or incidental to the story they were illustrating.

One such artist whose work I've always truly admired was James R. Bingham. Here are a few examples of his prowess in painting landscapes. Set aside the subject or purpose of each of these images and just study these amazing landscape interpretations. In each case, you'll see how Bingham truly captured the setting in form, light and colour!

Christopher Davis Describes His Method

Once agin in the Grumbacher Library edition, The Art of Oil Painting, Albert Pucci is joined by Christopher Davis, another master of the palette knife technique.



Here, Davis describes his process...















Like to see more of Christopher Davis' work? I wrote about him last year around this time - you can read that post at this link.