The artist is Edwin Georgi (1896-1964), the subject of the latest monograph on an American illustrator by The Illustrated Press.
Georgi was a pilot in WWI, but was shot down and injured. While recovering, he took up an interest in art. Mostly self-taught, he began his career doing paste-ups in an advertising agency. His early illustrations were muted and restrained.
His earliest illustrations were for advertising clients, portraying exotic women in elegant settings. As time went by his approach to color became more daring.
He is best known for a shimmering, golden backlighting, painted in a pointillist style. He often accentuated color effects by placing strong warm and cool accents near each other.
He was a bold experimenter with lighting ideas, and he painted in many media, including colored ink, watercolor, gouache, and oil.
The book starts with a short bio, but the bulk of the pages are devoted to large reproductions of originals and tearsheets.
The book is loaded with art, and includes a lot of preliminary studies rendered in pencil, ink, and gouache, sometimes with the art director's comments written in the margins. Many of the sketches are paired with the finished work, so you can study how the pictures developed.
The Art of Edwin Georgi
is hardback 224 pages, 9" x 12" full color. The standard edition is $44.95, and there's also a collectable slipcased edition of 100.
is hardback 224 pages, 9" x 12" full color. The standard edition is $44.95, and there's also a collectable slipcased edition of 100.
Previous books in this series by The Illustrated Press are each limited to 1000 copies include Tom Lovell—Illustrator
and The Art of Jon Whitcomb
and The Art of Jon Whitcomb
If you like this blog, please nominate it and vote for me.
4 comments:
HI James,
I am just getting started with plein air painting and sketching I have been focusing on the figure for the past few years. I purchased your book and water colors in the wild. What would you recommend I concentrate on to get some traction with my studies? I guess what I am asking is there a hierarchy of importance of understanding when it comes to drawing and painting plein air. Thanks for all you do.
Tom
These are so beautiful.
Thomas, You might want to pick something that doesn't move and is fairly close up, such as a fire hydrant, a garbage can, or exposed tree roots.
Extraordinary use of light and colour. Very vivid! I'll have to check overseas shipping.
The art blog awards voting reminds me of witches' contests in Terry Pratchett's Discworld setting: it's not about who comes first, it's about who comes in second to James Gurney...
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