Aubrey Beardsley – part 4

March 11, 2013, 3:22 am

Self-Portrait

Aubrey Beardsley (1872 – 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His drawings in black ink, influenced by the style of Japanese woodcuts, emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James McNeill Whistler. Beardsley's contribution to the development of the Art Nouveau and poster styles was significant, despite the brevity of his career before his early death from tuberculosis at the age of 25.

This is part 4 of a 7-part post on the works of Aubrey Beardsley. For biographical notes on Beardsley see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 3 also.

1893-94 Réjane

c1893-94 Raphael Sanzio

1893-96 Keynote Series of Novels and Short Stories

Aubrey Beardsley illustrated the series of modern "woman-friendly" novels published by John Lane in the mid 1890s as a response to the emergence of the concept of the "New Woman". Beardsley and Lane were also working on 'The Yellow Book' at this time. Beardsley's cover design for the first book in the series, George Egerton's "Keynotes", resulted in the series becoming synonymous with fin-de-siecle decadence. An ornamental key, embodying the author's monogram was adopted on the title pages and back cover of each volume of the series:

1893 Design for Keynotes by George Egerton.

1893 Keynotes by George Egerton

1893 Title page for Pagan Papers

1894 Cover for "Poor Folk by Fedor Dostoievsky"

1894 Title page for Poor Folk

1894 A Child of the Age by Francis Adams

1894 Title page for A Child of the Age by Francis Adams

Design for front cover The Great God Pan and The Inmost Light

The Great God Pan and The Inmost Light

Design for cover of Discords by George Egerton

1895 Prince Zaleski by M. P. Shiel

The Woman Who Did

Cover design for Grey Roses by Henry Harland

Title page for Grey Roses by Henry Harland

1895 At the First Corner and Other Stories by H. B. Marriot Watson

1895 Monochromes by Ella D'Arcy

1895 At The Relton Arms by Evelyn Sharp copy

1895 The Girl From The Farm by Gertrude Dix

The Mirror of Music by Stanley V. Makower

Title page for The Mirror of Music by Stanley V. Makower

Title page for Yellow and White by W. Carlton Dawe

1895 Design for title page of The Mountain Lovers by Fiona Macleod

1895 The Mountain Lovers by Fiona Macleod

1895 Title page to Young Ofeg's Ditties

1896 Title page for Nobody's Fault by Netta Syrett

24. Design for The Three Imposters by Arthur Machen

Design for The British Barbarians by Grant Allen

Design for Platonic Affections by John Smith

1896 Design for the cover of 'The Barbarous Britishers'

1896 The Barbarous Britishers

1896 Design for Circular advertising Keynotes Series

1894 Advertisement for Children's Books lithograph 76 x 50.7 cm

1894 Design for St Paul's ink 12.8 x 12.9 cm

1894 Design for Frontispiece to John Davidson's Plays graphite, pen and ink and wash on paper 28.6 x 18.7 cm

1894 Frontispiece to Baron Verdigris. A Romance of the Reversed Direction

1894 L'Education Sentimentale graphite, ink and watercolour 27.6 x 9 cm

1894 Madame Réjane ink and wash 35.6 x 23 cm

1894 Pierrot as Caddie invitation card designed for the opening of The Prince's Ladies' Golf Club, Mitcham

1894 Poster advertising 'A Comedy of Sighs', a play by John Todhunter lithograph and letterpress 76.1 x 50.8 cm

1894 Poster for the Royal Avenue Theatre, London (now The Playhouse)

1894 The Cambridge A.B.C. No.1

1894 Réjane red crayon and black ink. Published in The Studio 1898

1894 The Fat Woman (caricature of Mrs. Whistler) first published in "To-Day"

1894-5 Venus Between Terminal Gods frontispiece for "The Story of Venus and Tannhauser"

↧

Aubrey Beardsley – part 5

March 13, 2013, 3:30 am

≫ Next: Aubrey Beardsley – part 6

≪ Previous: Aubrey Beardsley – part 4

Aubrey Beardsley in 1896. Photograph by Frederick Hollyer

Aubrey Beardsley (1872 – 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His drawings in black ink, influenced by the style of Japanese woodcuts, emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James McNeill Whistler. Beardsley's contribution to the development of the Art Nouveau and poster styles was significant, despite the brevity of his career before his early death from tuberculosis at the age of 25.

This is part 5 of a 7-part post on the works of Aubrey Beardsley. For biographical notes on Beardsley see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 4 also.

1894-95 The Yellow Book:

1894 Design for prospectus of the "Yellow Book" black on yellow paper

1894 Cover Design for The Yellow Book Vol. I pen and ink and wash on paper 26 x 21.6 cm

1894 The Yellow Book Vol. I front cover

1894 Design for Back Cover of The Yellow Book Vol. I

1894 Title Page of The Yellow Book Vol. I

1894 L'Education Sentimentale Vol. I

1894 Night Piece Vol. I

1894 Portrait of Mrs Patrick Campbell Vol. I

1893 Ex-Libris for John Lumsden Propert Vol. I

1893 Design for Cover of The Yellow Book Vol. II

1894 The Yellow Book Vol. II front cover

1894 The Comedy-Ballet of Marionettes Vol. II

1894 Garcons de Café Vol. II

1894 The Slippers of Cinderella Vol. II

The Slippers of Cinderella. The artist subsequently coloured the original with scarlet and green, in which state it is unpublished.

The Slippers of Cinderella ink and wash

1894 Portrait of Madame Réjane Vol. II

1894 Design for Cover of The Yellow Book Vol. III

1894 The Yellow Book Vol. III front cover

1894 Title Page Vol. III

1894 Portrait of Mantegna

The above Portrait of Mantegna was published, for a practical joke, in the name of Philip Broughton.

1894 Portrait of the Artist, Fancy Portrait of Himself in Bed Vol. III

1894 Lady Gold's Escort from Vol. III

1894 The Wagnerites at the performance of Tristan und Isolde Vol. III ink 17.9 x 20.8 cm

1894 La Dame aux Camélias Vol. III

1895 Prospectus for The Yellow Book Vol. IV

1895 The Yellow Book front cover Vol. IV

1895 The Mysterious Rose Garden Vol. IV graphite and ink 22.4 x 12.5 cm

1895 The Repentance of Mrs...

1895 Portrait of Mrs Winifred Emery Vol. IV

1895 Juvenal frontispiece Vol. IV (featured in Part 1 of this post)

1895 Design for a front cover of The Yellow Book (not used)

Showcard to advertise The Yellow Book Vol. III lithograph

Illustration from the above

Design for Cover of The Yellow Book Vol. 5 (not used)

Title Page illustration for The Yellow Book (not sure which one)

* * *

c1894 Caprice. Verso - Masked Woman with a White Mouse oil on canvas 76.2 x 63.5 cm

c1894 Perseus

1895 A Child at its Mother's Bed

1895 Black Coffee graphite, ink and grey wash 15.7 x 15.9 cm

1895 Design for an Invitation Card Seated Pierrot Smoking

1895 Frontispiece to Chopin's Nocturnes graphite ink and grey wash 19.7 x 18.3 cm

1895 Frontispiece to Chopin's Third Ballade ink and wash on paper 26 x 24.5 cm published in The Studio

1895 Full and True Account of the Wonderful Mission of Earl Lavender frontispiece ink 25.9 x 15.6 cm

1895 Isolde black and grey ink, red and green watercolour 28.6 x 18 cm

1895 Isolde from The Studio

1895 John Bull for The Savoy 2

1895 Messalina Returning Home

1895 Messalina Returning from the Bath published in Second Book

1895 Four illustrations from Tales of Mystery and Wonder by Edgar Allen Poe:

1895 The Black Cat

1895 The Murders in the Rue Morgue

1895 The Mask of the Red Death

1895 The Fall of the House of Usher

* * *

1895 The Story of Venus and Tannhauser graphite and ink 29.7 x 17.8 cm

1895 The Return of Tannhäuser to the Venusberg (not used)

1895 The London Garland - A Suggested Reform in Ballet Costume

↧

Aubrey Beardsley – part 6

March 15, 2013, 3:08 am

≫ Next: Aubrey Beardsley – part 7

≪ Previous: Aubrey Beardsley – part 5

Aubrey Beardsley Self-Portrait

Aubrey Beardsley (1872 – 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His drawings in black ink, influenced by the style of Japanese woodcuts, emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James McNeill Whistler. Beardsley's contribution to the development of the Art Nouveau and poster styles was significant, despite the brevity of his career before his early death from tuberculosis at the age of 25.

This is part 6 of a 7-part post on the works of Aubrey Beardsley. For biographical notes on Beardsley see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 5 also.

Warning: This post contains some drawings of a sexually explicit nature.

c1895 Venus (Title-page design for The Story of Venus and Tannhäuser) graphite and ink 11.3 x 8.1 cm

1895c The Mirror of Love (not used) first published in Aubrey Beardsley by Arthur Symons in 1898

1896 Ali Baba in the Wood graphite and ink 24.6 x 17 cm

1896 Apollo Pursuing Daphne

1896 Cover design for Smithers' Catalogue of Rare Books

1896 Design for cover of Sappho by H. T. Wharton

1896 Cover of Sappho by H. T. Wharton (gold on blue)

1896 Frontispiece to An Evil Motherhood by Walt Ruding

1896Illustrations for Pierrot's Library:

1896 Pierrot's Library title page

1896 Pierrot's Library

* * *

1896 Poster design advertising pocket volume of The Spinster's Scrip

1896 frontispiece for The Comedy of the Rhinegold

1896 Illustrations for The Lysistrata of Aristophanes:

1896 Lysistrata

1896 Lysistrata Haranguing the Athenian Women

1896 The Toilet of Lampito

1896 Lysistrata Defending the Acropolis

1896 Two Athenian Women in Distress

1896 The Examination of the Herald

1896 Cinesias Soliciting Myrrhina to Coition

1896 The Lacedaemonian Ambassadors

1896 Illustrations for The Rape of the Lock:

1896 Design for front cover

1896 Front cover

1896 The Dream pen and ink 25.4 x 17.1 cm

1896 The Billet-Doux

1896 The Toilet

1896 The Baron's Prayer graphite and ink 25.7 x 17.5 cm

1896 The Rape of the Lock

1896 The Barge

1896 The Battle of the Beaux and the Belles ink 17.6 x 25.7 cm

1896 The Cave of Spleen pen and ink 25.5 x 17.3 cm

1896 The New Star (cul-de-lampe) graphite and ink 30.8 x 18.4 cm

1896 Illustrations for The Savoy:

1895 Prospectus for The Savoy graphite and ink 24.3 x 17 cm

1896 Prospectus for The Savoy with burlesque cupid

1896 The Savoy compendium

1896 Proof Cover of The Savoy No. 1

1896 Title Page for The Savoy graphite, ink and white gouache 36.9 x 28 cm

1896 The Savoy No. 1. The Three Musicans

1896 The Savoy No. 1. The Three Musicans (variant withheld)

1896 The Savoy No. 1. The Bathers (on Dieppe Beach)

1896 The Savoy No. 1. The Moska

1896 The Savoy No. 1. The Toilet of Helen

1896 The Savoy No. 1.The Abbé

1895-6 The Savoy No. 1. The Fruit Bearers graphite and ink 25 x 17.8 cm

1896 The Savoy No. 1. A Large Christmas Card 15.6 x 23.5 cm

A Large Christmas Cardwas a loose insertion in the first issue of The Savoy.

1896 The Savoy No. 2 Cover

1896 The Savoy No. 2. The Ecstasy of St. Rose of Lima

1896 The Savoy No. 2. The Third Tableau of Das Rheingold

1896 The Savoy No. 3 Cover

1896 The Savoy No. 3. The Coiffing from The Ballad of the Barber

1896 The Savoy No. 3. "Cul-de-Lampe" Cupid carrying a Gibbet

1896 The Savoy No. 5 signed Giulio Floriana as a practical joke.

1896 The Savoy No. 6. The Death of Pierrot

1896 The Savoy No. 6 Cover illustration The Fourth Tableau of Das Rheingold

1896 The Savoy No. 7 Cover

1896 The Savoy No. 7. Ave Atque Vale

Illustrations for The Savoy continue in part 7, the final part of this posting on Beardsley.

↧

Aubrey Beardsley – part 7

March 17, 2013, 2:49 am

≫ Next: Robert Crumb – album covers

≪ Previous: Aubrey Beardsley – part 6

Aubrey Beardsley c1890 photograph by Frederick Hollyer

Aubrey Beardsley (1872 – 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His drawings in black ink, influenced by the style of Japanese woodcuts, emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James McNeill Whistler. Beardsley's contribution to the development of the Art Nouveau and poster styles was significant, despite the brevity of his career before his early death from tuberculosis at the age of 25.

This is part 7 of a 7-part post on the works of Aubrey Beardsley. For biographical notes on Beardsley see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 6 also.

1896 More illustrations from The Savoy:

1896 The Savoy No. 7. Tristan und Isolde

1896 The Savoy No. 8 Cover. "Puck on Pegasus"

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Don Juan, Sganarelle and the Beggar graphite and ink 20.8 x 12.3 cm

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Flosshilde, a Rhine Maiden from Das Rheingold

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Mrs Pinchwife Country Wife by Wycherley

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Erda from Das Rheingold

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy graphite and ink 16.3 x 10.3 cm

1896 The Savoy No. 8 Alberich from Das Rheingold ink 8.4 x 8.4 cm

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Count Valmont from Les Liaisons Dangereuses

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Et in Arcadio Ego

1896 The Savoy No. 8. Carl Maria von Weber

1896 Cover Design for The Savoy graphite and ink 23.1 x 17.7 cm

1896 Poster Design for The Savoy line-cut with hand-colouring 23.2 x 17.7 cm

c1896 Poster for The Savoy lithograph 32.2 x 25.5 cm (sheet)

Design for the cover of The Savoy

* * *

c1896 The cover of Tristan and Isolde

1896-97 The Impatient Adulterer from Juvenal

1897 Ali Baba (Cover design for The Forty Thieves) graphite, ink and White gouache 24 x 19.8 cm

1897 Atalanta in Calydon first published in Fifty Drawings

1897 Cover design for The Book of Fifty Drawings

1897 Cover of The Book of Fifty Drawings

1897 Cover design for The Life and Times of Madame du Barry

1897 Cover of The Life and Times of Madame du Barry

1897 Frontispiece to A Book of Bargains

1897 Illustrations for Pierrot of the Minute:

1897 Design for front cover of The Pierrot of the Minute

1897 Front cover of The Pierrot of the Minute

1897 Frontispiece to The Pierrot of the Minute

1897 Headpiece for Pierrot of the Minute

1897 Initial letter P for Pierrot of the Minute

1897 Cul-de-Lampe for The Pierrot of the Minute

* * *

1897-98 Headpiece from The Idler

1897 Title Page for The Parade

1897-98 D'Albert for Six Drawings Illustrating Théophile Gautier's Romance 9.5 x 7 cm

1898 Illustrations for Mademoiselle de Maupin by Théophile Gautier:

1897 Mademoiselle de Maupin, for Six Drawings Illustrating Théophile Gautier's Romance graphite, black, grey and pink wash, heightened with white 18.3 x 12.9 cm

1897 Mademoiselle de Maupin D'Albert in search of his Ideals graphite ink and grey wash 20 x 16.8 cm

1898 Mademoiselle de Maupin Lady at a Dressing Table

1897 Mademoiselle de Maupin The Lady with a Rose graphite, ink and grey wash 19.9 x 16.7 cm

1898 Mademoiselle de Maupin The Lady with Monkey

1897-98 Illustrations for Volpone by Ben Johnson:

01. 1897-98 Design for Front Cover and Frontispiece of Volpone graphite and ink 27.9 x 21.1 cm

1897-98 Cover of Volpone gold on blue cloth

1897-98 Initial letter Vignette to the Argument Initial letter V graphite and ink 12 x 13 cm

1897-98 Vignette to Act I Initial letter V graphite and ink 17.9 xx 16.2 cm

1897-98 Vignette to Act II & Act IV Initial letter S graphite and ink 17.5 x 15.9 cm

1897-98 Vignette to Act V Initial letter V graphite and ink 17.2 x 16 cm

1897-98 Vignette to Act III Initial letter M pen and crayon

1898 Volpone Adoring his Treasure graphite and ink 29 x 20.4 cm

Note: I do not have much information for these final few pieces and they are undated:

1898 Poster for Singer Sewing Machines

Caricature of a Figure in a Sunflower Dress

Portrait of Miss Letty Lind from The Artist's Model published in "Early Work"

Atalanta in Calydon with the Hound published in Early Work

Salome

Echo of Venice

Le Docteur Faustroll

Caricature of James McNeill Whistler pen and ink 21.1 x 11.8 cm

Poster The Pseudonym and Autonym Libraries lithograph

Withered Spring pen and ink heightened with white 39.2 x 22.3 cm

↧

Robert Crumb – album covers

March 19, 2013, 3:20 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss – part 1

≪ Previous: Aubrey Beardsley – part 7

American cartoonist Robert Crumb (born 1943 in Philadelphia) is widely considered to be the "father of underground comics." His work has a distinctive style and satirical tone and often features strongly stereotyped portrayals of minorities and overly sexualized women. He is best known for creating the cartoon characters Fritz the Cat, Mr. Natural and Devil Girl.

Crumb has illustrated many album covers, including most prominently Cheap Thrills by Big Brother & the Holding Company and the compilation album The Music Never Stopped: Roots of the Grateful Dead.

1968 Big Brother & the Holding Company with Janis Joplin Cheap Thrills

1995 Roots of the Grateful Dead The Music Never Stopped

1972 Earl Hooker There's a Fungus Amung Us

1972 Good Tone Banjo Boys

1973 Please Warm My Weiner Old Time Hokum Blues

1974 Big John Wrencher and His Maxwell Street Blues Boys Maxwell Street Alley Blues

1974 Dave Jasen Rompin’ Stompin’ Ragtime

Between 1974 and 1984, Crumb drew at least 17 album covers for Yazoo Records/Blue Goose Records, including those of the Cheap Suit Serenaders. He also created the revised logo and record label designs of Blue Goose Records that were used from 1974 onward.

1974 R. Crumb and His Cheap Suit Serenaders (front cover)

1974 R. Crumb and His Cheap Suit Serenaders (back cover)

1974 Ukelele Ike I'm a Bear ina a Lady's Boudoir

1975 Casey Bill Welden and Kokomo Arnold Bottleneck Guitar Trendsetters of the 1930s

1975 The Hokum Boys You Can't Get Enough of that Stuff

1975 Roy Smeck plays Hawaiian Guitar, Banjo, Ukelele and Guitar 1926-1949

1976 Harmonica Blues

1976 R. Crumb and his Cheap Suit Serenaders No. 2 (aka Chasin' Rainbows)

1977 Larry Groce Turn on Your TV

1978 Harmonica Blues Band Bring Me Another Half a Pint

1978 Blind Boy Fuller Truckin' my Blues Away

1978 Bo Carter Banana in Your Fruit Basket

1978 R. Crumb and the Cheap Suit Serenaders Number Three

1978 The Klezmorim Streets of Gold

1978 The Cheap Suit Serenaders Party Record

1979 Memphis Jug Band Double Album

1982 The Otis Brothers Flying Crow

1985 Louie Blue

1987 Robert Crumb, Dominic Cravic and others Cocktail D'Amour

In 1992 and 1993 Crumb was involved in a project by a Dutch formation, The Beau Hunks, and for both their albums The Beau Hunks Play the Original Laurel & Hardy Music (1 & 2), he was the illustrator for the album covers, as well as for the album booklets.

1993 The Beau Hunks Play the Original Laurel & Hardy Music

1999 Kansas Joe and Memphis Minnie

2000 Trésors Illustrés des Musiques Populaires du XXe siècle

2003 That's What I Call Sweet Music

2006 The East River Band Sweet East River

2006 Alan Seidler "The Duke of Ook"

2008 Eden & John's East River String Band Some Cold Rainy Day

2009 Hot Women

2009 Eden & John's East River String Band Drunken Barrel House Blues

In 2010 Crumb drew three artworks for Christopher King's Aimer Et Perdre: To Love And To Lose Songs, 1917-1934released on CD on Tompkins Square in 2012.

2010 Aimer et Perdre To Love & to Lose, Songs 1917-1934

2010 Aimer et Perdre To Love & to Lose

2010 Aimer et Perdre, To Love & to Lose, Songs

2011 Eden & John's East River String Band Be Kind to a Man When He's Down

↧

Alex Steinweiss – part 1

March 21, 2013, 3:26 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss – part 2

≪ Previous: Robert Crumb – album covers

Having looked at the album cover art of cartoonist Robert Crumb in the last post, I thought this might be an opportune time to look at the work of Alex Steinweiss (1917 - 2011). Alex Steinweiss played a seminal role in record cover design as the art director for Columbia Records as well as other record companies, London, Decca and A & R records. He also worked for clients including National Distillery, Schenley Distributors, as well as Print and Fortune magazines.

When Alex Steinweiss was appointed as art director at Columbia Records in 1938, there was no such thing as a record sleeve. Luckily, within a year of starting his new job Steinweiss’ had his eureka moment and persuaded his bosses to invest $250,000 in the equipment needed to print on record packaging.

No longer would records come in plain brown wrappers. Steinweiss created the ‘album package.’ His idea was to create a visual to complement the musical. It was an instant success, and spawned an entire new field of illustration and design: Album Cover Art. Steinweiss was the king of the genre; his covers are still regarded as icons. In his four decade career, Steinweiss created album covers for musical luminaries such as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Igor Stravinsky and Benny Goodman.

Quote: “I got this idea that the way they were selling these albums was ridiculous. The covers were just big brown, tan or green paper. I said: “Who the hell’s going to buy this stuff? There’s no push to it. There’s no attractiveness. There’s no sales appeal.” So I told them I’d like to start designing covers.”

Steinweiss' Generic Covers:

From about 1940 to 1943, Masterworks sets without unique covers (and this was the vast majority of them) came in plain grey covers with the title and artist information enclosed within a box. After that, an attractive new generic design was unveiled which, though unsigned by Steinweiss, appears to be his work (in particular, the lower-case rendering of "columbia" is a hallmark of his style). It came in three colours.

Generic polka-dot style

The next generic cover design appeared in 1947, and it is the only one that's actually signed by Steinweiss. It features a Greek statue in the background, three large spots for work, artist and album details, and smaller spots showing various instruments, a singer and a conductor; and again it came in colour variations.

Generic Greek style

In 1948 came not one, but several new generic covers, keyed to various genres of music. Orchestral, String and Chamber, Other Instrumental, Vocal, and Columbia Masterworks. All of these cover designs came in a variety of colours as well.

Generic Orchestral

Generic String and Chamber

Generic Other Instrumental

Generic Vocal

Generic Columbia Masterworks

Alex Steinweiss' career can be divided into roughly five periods. From 1939 to perhaps 1945, he designed all the covers for Columbia. During this period, he developed the entire graphic "language" of album design.

The second period is from 1945 to roughly 1950, during which he was no longer the sole designer for Columbia. He also began designing for other companies. This period is sometimes described as the "First Golden Age" of the album cover.

Steinweiss' signature font, the "Steinweiss Scrawl," first appeared in roughly 1947:

Steinweiss is credited with designing the first individually illustrated album cover in 1940 Smash Song Hits by Rodgers & Hart:

1940 "Smash Song Hits by Rodgers & Hart" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-11]

Starting in around 1950, Steinweiss did the covers and record label for Remington, and began a more than 20 year association with both Decca and London Records. For his Decca designs Steinweiss employed the pseudonym 'Piedra Blanca', which was quite clever. In German Steinweiss means White Stone. He therefore used the Spanish for white stone Piedra Blanca.

Like his earlier periods, most of his early 1950s designs are drawn, for Columbia, RCA, Remington, Decca and London. This is his third period, when he did drawing, lettering, and layout that was often brilliant but perhaps not as memorable as his late 1940s period. It was during this period that he collaborated with Margaret Bourke-White on a memorable series of covers for Columbia.

Starting in the mid-1950s, Steinweiss added photography to his palette. Steinweiss's photographic covers are remarkably distinctive. He utilized strange garish colours, odd lighting, and numerous visual puns and reference points.

He continued to work for Decca and London, and did the entire series of covers (and the logo and label) for the start-up Everest label from 1958 until roughly 1960. This was his fourth period, characterised by photography but continuing to use the entire range of tools he had developed. Steinweiss' final period of record cover design was from 1960 to roughly 1973, again working for Decca and London. His new developments of the period were in die-cut designs and collage. Alex Steinweiss died in 2011.

This is part 1 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss:

"Chain Gang" Joshua White and his Carolinians [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-22] signed Steiweiss

1940 "Bessie Smith - Empress of the Blues" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-31] signed Steinweiss

1940 "Barber Shop Melodies by The Flat Foot Four"[Columbia Records catalogue no. C-35] signed Steinweiss

1940 "Dinner Music" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-21]

1940 "Eddy Duchin" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-32] signed Steinweiss

1940 "Famous Songs of Bert Williams" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-25] signed Steinweiss

1940 "Invitation to the Dance… Strauss Waltzes" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-13] signed Steinweiss

1940 "Tango" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-15] signed Steinweiss

1940 "At the Piano…Frankie Carle" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-23] signed Steinweiss

1940 "La Conga" Desi Arnaz and his La Conga Orchestra [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-12] signed Steinweiss

1940s Larry Adler "Harmonica Virtuoso" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-18] signed Steinweiss

1940 Dvorák "New World Symphony" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4023] signed Steinweiss

Late 1940s Delius "Concerto for Violin and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-672] signed Steinweiss

1941 "Congas / Rumbas" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-65] signed Steinweiss

1941 "Duchin - Gershwin" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-52]

1941 "Cante Flamenco" La Nona de los Peines [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-59] signed Steinweiss

1941 "John Kirby and his Orchestra" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-45] signed Steinweiss

1941 "Here Comes the Showboat" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-55] signed Steinweiss

1941 "Rhapsody in Blue" [Columbia Records catalogue no. X-196] signed Steinweiss

1941 Alec Wilder Octet [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-60] signed Steinweiss

1941 Burl Ives "The Wayfaring Stranger" [Columbia Okeh catalogue no. K-3] signed Steinweiss

1941 Charles Magnante "Accordiana" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-53] signed Steinweiss

1941 Circus [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-58] signed Steinweiss

1941 Kate Smith "USA" [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-50] signed Steinweiss

1941 Marimba Music [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-71] signed Steinweiss

1941 Oscar Strauss conducting his "Chocolate Soldier" and other Operetta Favorites [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-67]

1941 Rhumba with Cugat [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-45] signed Steinweiss - an experiment with scalloped edging on the binding

1941 Theme Songs [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-63] signed Steinweiss

1941-42 Silkscreened poster

c1941 "Memorial Album" Hal Kemp [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-42] signed Steinweiss

1941 Paul Robeson "Songs of Free Men" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-534] signed Steinweiss

1942 "Boogie Woogie" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. C-44] signed Steinweiss

1942 "The Boswell Sisters" [Columbia catalogue no. C-82] signed Steinweiss

1942 Beethoven "Emperor - Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-Flat" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-500] signed Steinweiss

1942 Enesco "Roumanian Rhapsody No. 1" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-203] signed Steinweiss

1942 Cesar Franck "Symphony in D Minor" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-479] signed Steinweiss

1942 Duchin Plays Cole Porter [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-87] signed Steinweiss

1942 Frankie Carle and his Girl Friends [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-97] signed Steinweiss

1942 Jerome Kern "Mark Twain" [Columbia Records catalogue no. X-227] signed Steinweiss

↧

Alex Steinweiss – part 2

March 23, 2013, 2:55 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss - part 3

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss – part 1

Alex Steinweiss (1917 - 2011) played a seminal role in record cover design as the art director for Columbia Records as well as other record companies, London, Decca and A & R records. He revolutionized the way records were packaged and marketed. His genre-defining work in the visual expression of music transformed both the design and the music industries.

For full biographical notes on Alex Steinweiss, and for earlier works, see part 1.

This is part 2 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss:

1942 Kostelanetz plays Musical Comedy Favorites No. 2 [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-502] signed Steinweiss

1942 Mendelssohn "A Midsummer Night's Dream" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-504] signed Steinweiss

1942 Offenbach "Gaîté Parisienne" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. X-115] signed Steinweiss

1942 Jerome Kern's "Showboat" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-495] signed Steinweiss

1942 Oscar Levant "Concerto in F" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-512] signed Steinweiss

1942 Show Tunes of Sigmund Romberg [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-88] signed Steinweiss

1942 Shostakovitch "Symphony No. 5" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-520] signed Stenweiss

1942 Sibelius "Symphony No. 7" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M524] signed Steinweiss

c1942 "Louis and Earl" Louis Armstrong / Earl Hines [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-73] signed Steinweiss

1943 Mahler "Das Lied von der Erde" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-MM-300] signed Steinweiss

1943 Puccini "La Boheme" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-274] signed Steinweiss

1943 Beethoven "Symphony No. 3 in E Flat (Eroica)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-449] signed Steinweiss

c1943 Bizet "Carmen Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. X-144] signed Steinweiss

c1943-44 Fauré "Requiem" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-354] signed Steinweiss

1944 Beethoven "Symphony No. 9" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-227] signed Steinweiss

1944 "After Dark" Morton Gould and his Orchestra [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-107] signed Steinweiss

1944 Blues by Basie [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-101] signed Steinweiss

1944 Gershwin "Rhapsody in Blue" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-251] signed Steinweiss

1944 Stravinsky "Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-417] signed Steinweiss

c1944 Ravel 'Bolero" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-257] signed Steinweiss

1945 Basil Rathbone "Robin Hood" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-583] signed Steinweiss

1945 "Exotic Music" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. X-264] signed Steinweiss

1945 Beethoven "Ninth Symphony" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-591] signed Steinweiss

1945 Gershwin "Porgy and Bess" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-572] signed Steinweiss

1945 Benny Goodman Sextet [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-102] signed Steinweiss

1945 Grieg "Piano Concerto in A Minor" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-313] signed Steinweiss

1945 Lalo "Symphonie Espanole for Violin and Orchestra op. 21" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-564] signed Steinweiss

1945 Rachmaninoff "Symphony No. 2" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-569] signed Steinweiss

1945 Lily Pons "Two Famous Coloratura Arias" [Columbia Records catalogue no. MM-561] signed Steinweiss

1945 Mozart "Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-650] signed Steinweiss

1945 Risë Stevens "The Songs of Jerome Kern" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-568] signed Steinweiss

1945 Rimsky-Korsakov "Suite from Le Coq d'Or" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-254]

1945 Saint-Saëns "Concerto No. 4" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM 566] signed Steinweiss

1945 Serésras [Columbia Masterwoks catalogue no. X-249] signed Steinweiss

1945c Claudia Muzio "Operatic Recital" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-269] signed Steinweiss

1945-46 Risë Stevens "Love Songs" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-595] signed Steinweiss

1945-46 Mahler Symphony No. 4" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-589] signed Steinweiss

1946 "Lily Pons soprano" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-638] signed Steinweiss

1946 "Jennie Tourel" mezzo soprano [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-625] signed Steinweiss

1946 "El Amor Brujo" (Love by Witchcraft) Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-633] signed Steinweiss

1946 "Music of Jerome Kern" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. CL 776] signed Steinweiss

1946 "Music of Fritz Kreisler" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-614] signed Steinweiss

1946 "The Music of Romberg" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-635] signed Steinweiss

1946 Beethoven "Sonata No. 8 in C Minor opus 13 (Pathétique)" Rudolph Serkin Piano [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-648] signed Steinweiss

1946 Bach " Concerto No. 1 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-624] signed Steinweiss

1946 Benjamin Britten "The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-703] signed Steinweiss

1946 Brahms "Symphony No. 4" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-567] signed Steinweiss

1946 Handel "Water Music Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-279] signed Steinweiss

1946 Brahms "Symphony No. 3 in F Major" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-642] signed Steinweiss

1946 Mozart " Concerto in E-Flat Major for Two Pianos and Orchestra k. 365" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-628] signed Steinweiss

1946 Richard Strauss "Death and Transfiguration" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-613] signed Steinweiss

1946 Paul White "Sea Chanty" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-259] signed Steinweiss

1946 Romberg "The Desert Song" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. X-260] signed Steinweiss

↧

Alex Steinweiss - part 3

March 25, 2013, 2:36 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss - part 4

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss – part 2

For full biographical notes on Alex Steinweiss see part 1, and for earlier works see parts 1 - 2 also.

This is part 3 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss:

1946 Shostakovitch "Piano Concerto" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no.MM 527] signed Steinweiss

1946 Schumann "Symphony No. 1" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-617] signed Steinweiss

1946 Shostakovich "Symphony No. 6" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-585] signed Steinweiss

1946-47 Nelson Eddy "By Request" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-571] signed Steinweiss

1947 "The Minstrel Boy" Christopher Lynch tenor [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-722] signed Steinweiss

1947 Bartók "Concerto no. 3 for Piano and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-674] signed Steinweiss

1947 Beethoven "Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM 624] signed Steinweiss

1947 Beethoven "Appassionata - Sonata No. 23 in F Minor opus 57" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-711] signed Steinweiss

1947 "6 Dances" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-588] signed Steinweiss

1947 Debussy "Sonata No. 2 for Flute, Viola and Harp" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-282] signed Steinweiss

1947 Khachaturian "Gayne Ballet Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-664] signed Steinweiss

1947 Beethoven "Symphony No. 6 in F Major - Pastorale" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-631] signed Steinweiss

1947 Morton Gould Showcase [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. A-706] signed Steinweiss

1947 Mozart "Quintet for Clarinet and Strings in A Major k 581" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-702] signed Steinweiss

1947 Music of Morton Gould [Columbia Masterworks] signed Steinweiss

1947 Prokofiev "Concerto No. 3 in C Major for Piano and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-667] signed Steinweiss

1947 Richard Strauss "Le Bougois Gentilhomme" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-693] signed Steinweiss

1947 Songs of Victor Herbert [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-682] signed Steinweiss

1947 Schubert "Symphony No. 8 in B Minor (Unfinished)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-699] signed Steinweiss

1947 Schubert "Symphony No. 9 in C Major" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-679] signed Steinweiss

1947 Stravinsky "Firebird Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-653] signed Steinweiss

1947 Tchaikovsky "Nutcracker Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-627] signed Steinweiss

c1947 Mahler "Songs of the Wayfarer" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MX-267] signed Steinweiss

1948 "Cole Porter" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-721] signed Steinweiss

1948 "Motion Picture Favorites" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2022]

1948 "Date with Jane Powell" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2045 signed Steinweiss

1948 Beethoven "Seventh Symphony" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4011] signed Steinweiss

1948 Carnival Tropicana [Columbia Records catalogue no. CL 789] signed Steinweiss

1948 Do You Remember? [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-787] signed Steinweiss

1948 Brahms "Symphony no. 2 in D Major op. 73" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-725] signed Steinweiss

1948 Nelson Eddy in "Songs of Stephen Foster Vol. 2" [Columbia Masterworks catallogue no. MM-795] signed Steinweiss

1948 Prokofiev "Violin Concerto in D" [Columbia Records catalogue no. M-244] signed Steinweiss

1948 Ferde Grote "Grand Canyon Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. M-483] signed Steinweiss

1948-49 Brahms "Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-Flat Major" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4014] signed Steinweiss

1949 Bizet "Symphony in C Major" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-2051]

1949 Beethoven "Symphony No. 9 in D Minor opus 125 (Choral)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. SL-56 (ML 4199)] signed Steinweiss

1949 Beethoven "Symphony No. 3 in e Flat Major opus 55 (Eroica)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-4228] signed Steinweiss

1949 Bruch " Concerto No. 1 in G Minor for Violin and Orchestra opus 26" Beethoven "Romance No. 1 in G Major opus 40 / Romance No.2 in F Major op. 50" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4575]

1949 Gyorgy Sandor Piano "A Chopin Recital / Beethoven Sonata No. 15 in D Major op. 28 (Pastorale)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-4193] signed Steinweiss

1949 Liszt "Méphisto Waltz" Enesco "Romanian Rhapsody No. 1 in A Major opus 11" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-2057] signed Steinweiss

1949 Kreisler Favorites ml-4219/ Paganini Caprices opus 1 [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-4219] signed Steinweiss

1949 Offenbach "Gaîté Parisienne Ballet" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4233] signed Steinweiss

1949 Puccini "Madame Butterfly" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. SL-104 (ML 4225)] signed Steinweiss

1949 Verdi "La Traviata" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. SL-103] signed Steinweiss

1949 Tchaikovsky "Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4232] signed Steinweiss

1950 "Lily Pons in Operatic Arias / Chansons" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4300] signed Steinweiss

1950 "Musical Comedy Favorites" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4241] signed Steinweiss

1950 Andre Kostelanetz and his Orchestra "All-Time Hits" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2106] signed Steinweiss

1950 Allen Funt "The Candid Microphone" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4344] signed Steinweiss

1950 Beethoven "Concerto No. 3 in C Minor for Piano and Orchestra op. 37" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4302] signed Steinweiss

1950 Beethoven "Symphony no. 5 in C Minor opus 67" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue n0. ML 4297] signed Steinweiss

1950 Bizet "Fair Maid of Perth" Delius "Over the Hills and Far Away" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2133] signed Steinweiss]

1950 Beethoven Concerto in C Major for Piano and Orchestra op. 15 [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4307]signed Steinweiss

↧

Alex Steinweiss - part 4

March 27, 2013, 3:17 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss – part 5

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss - part 3

For full biographical notes on Alex Steinweiss see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 3 also.

This is part 4 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss:

1950 Gershwin "Second Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra / Variations on 'I Got Rhythm' / Preludes 1, 2, 3" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2073] signed Steinweiss

1950 Paganini "Concerto No. 1 in Major opus 6" Saint-Saëns "Concerto No. 3 in B Minor opus 61" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4315] signed Steinweiss

1950 Chopin "Les Sylphides Ballet" Villa-Lobos "Uirapurú (A Symphonie Poem)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4255]

1950 Ravel "Shéhérazade" Moussorgsky "Songs and Dances of Death" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4289] signed Steinweiss

1950 Ravel " Daphnis et Chloe Suites Nos. 1 and 2" Schönberg "Verklärte Nacht (Tranfigured Night)" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4316] signed Steinweiss

1950 Mozart "Symphony No. 41 in C Major k551 / Symphony No. 38 in D Major k 504" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4313] signed Steinweiss

1950 Tchaikovsky "Capriccio Italien" Bizet "Carmen Suite" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4287] signed Steinweiss

1950-51 Mary Martin "Anything Goes by Cole Porter" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2159] signed Steinweiss

1950 Serge Prokofiev "Symhony No. 6 in E-Flat Minor, Op. 111" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4328] signed Steinweiss

c1950 "The Music of Vincent Youmans" [Columbia Records catalogue no. CL 734] signed Steinweiss

c1950 Kostelanetz Strings [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2100] signed Steinweiss

c1950 Grieg "Piano Concerto in A Minor opus 16" [Remington Records catalogue no. R-199-3] signed Steinweiss

1950s "Flamenco" [Remington Records]

1950s Bruch "Violin Concerto" [Remington Records]

1950s Cascading Strings [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8499]

1950s Chopin "12 Waltzes" [Remington Records]

early 1950s Khachaturian "Concerto for Piano and Orchestra" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4288] signed Steinweiss

early 1950s Tchaikovsky "Symphony No. 6 in B Minor opus 74" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4299] signed Steinweiss

early to mid 1950s "An Enchanted Evening with Mantovani and his Orchestra" [London Records catalogue no. LL766]

early to mid 1950s "Mantovani and his Orchestra play Tangos" [London Records catalogue no. LL768]

early to mid 1950s "Evening in Paris" [London Records catalogue no. LL997]

early to mid 1950s Mantovani "Romantic Melodies" [London Records catalogue no. LL979]

mid 1950s "New Directions in Music and Sound Vol 1" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9769] signed Piedra Blanca

mid 1950s mid "Gershwin for Moderns..." [London Records catalogue no. LL 1217]

mid 1950s mid "Dance to the Songs Everybody Knows" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 4119]

mid 1950s "Something to Remember You by…" [London Records catalogue no. LL 1231]jpg

mid 1950s "Whispering Moonlight" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8063] signed Piedra Blanca

mid 1950s Wolf-Ferrari "The Secret of Suzanne" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9770] signed Piedra Blanca

mid 1950s "The Music of Richard Rodgers" [London Records catalogue no. LL1209]

mid 1950s Gershwin "Rhapsody in Blue / Concerto in F" [London Records catalogue no. LL 1262]

mid 1950s Richard Strauss "Burlesque for Piano and Orchestra" Jean Francaix "Concertina for Piano and Orchestra" Arthur Honegger "Concertina for Piano and Orchestra" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. 9900]

mid 1950s Ted Heath "The London Palladium Vo. 3" [London Records catalogue no. LL 1211]

mid 1950s Paul Hindemith "Die Harmonie Der Welt" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9765] signed Piedra Blanca

mid 1950s Schumann "Symphony No. 4 in D Minor opus 120" Haydn "Symphony No. 88 in G Major" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9767] signed Piedra Blanca

1951 Music at Midnight [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2171] signed Steinweiss

1951 Beethoven "Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra opus 61" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4371] signed Steinweiss

1951 Handel-Beecham "The Faithful Shepherd Suite" Haydn "Symphomy No. 93 in D Major" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 54374] signed Steinweiss

1951 Tchaikovsky "Symphony No. 5" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4400] signed Steinweiss

1952 "Simon Barere Recital" [Remington Records catalogue no. R-198-85] signed Steinweiss

1952 Brahms "Sonata No. 1 in G Major op. 78 for Piano and Violin" + others [Remington Records catalogue no. R-199-84] signed Steinweiss

1952 Enesco "Roumanian Rhapsody" Smetana "The Moldau" [Remington Records catalogue no. R-149-52] signed Steinweiss

1952 Mozart "Symphony No. 29 in A Major k.201" Weber "Symphony No. 2 in C Major" [Remington Records catalogue no. R.199.112] signed Steinweiss

1952 Mozart "Concerto No. 3 in G Major k 216 for Violin and Orchestra" Handel "Water Music Suite" [Remington Records catalogue no. R-199-131] signed Steinweiss

1952 Mozart "Concerto No. 4 in D Major k 218 for Violin and Orchestra" [Remington Records catalogue no. R-199-125] signed Steinweiss

1953 "Invitation to Dining" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8057] signed Piedra Blanca

1953 "Cinema Rhapsodies" Victor Young and his Singing Strings [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8051] signed Piedra Blanca

1953 "Invitation to Cocktails" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8056] signed Piedra Blanca

1953 Bizet "Carmen (excerpts)" [Remington Records]

1953 Gordon Jenkins' "Seven Dreams" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 9011] signed Piedra Blanca

1953 Rimsky-Korsakoff "Scheherazade Symphony Suite for Orchestra" [Remington Records signed Steinweiss]

1954 "An Evening with Andrés Segovia" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9733] signed Piedra Blanca

1954 "…For Listening Only" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8082]

↧

Alex Steinweiss – part 5

March 29, 2013, 3:07 am

≫ Next: Alex Steinweiss - part 6

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss - part 4

For full biographical notes on Alex Steinweiss see part 1. For more works see parts 1 - 4 also.

This is part 5 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss:

1954 "Andrés Segovia plays…" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9734] signed Piedra Blanca

1954 Arriaga "Sinfonia A Gran Orquesta / Los Esclavos Felices Overture / Agar (Cantata)" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9737] signed Piedra Blanca

1954 "Fiesta in Madrid" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9735] signed Piedro Blanca

1954 Artie Shaw with Strings [Epic Records catalogue no. LG 3112] signed Steinweiss

1954 Hollywood Rhapsodies [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8060]

1954 Tchaikovsky "Serenade in C Major op. 48" Prokofieff "Classical Symphony op. 25" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9737] signed Piedro Blanca

1954 The Music of Fats Waller [London Records catalogue no. LL 978]

1955 Bartok "Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Orchestra" Martin "Petite Symphonie Concertante" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9774] signed Piedra Blanca

1955 Andrés Segovia guitar "Bach - Chaconne" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9751]

1955 "Music of Fritz Kreisler / Music of Sigmund Romberg" [Columbia Records catalogue no. CL 771] signed Steinweiss

c1955 George Gershwin "Rhapsody in Blue / Concerto in F" [London Records catalogue no. LL 1262]

c1955 "Music of Richard Rogers" [Columbia Records catalogue no. CL 784] signed Steinweiss

c1955 "Mantovani and his Orchestra Play The Music of Victor Herbert" [London Records catalogue no. LL746]

c1955 Mozart "Concerto No. 5 in A Major k 219 for Violin and Orchestra" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9766] signed Piedra Blanca

c1956 Bartók "Music for Strings. Percussion and Celesta / Dance Suite" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9747]

c1956 Brahms "Concerto in D Major op. 77 for Violin and Orchestra" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9754] signed Piedra Blanca

1956 The Hi-Fi Nightingale…Caterina Valente [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no DL 8203]

1957 Encyclopedia of Jazz on Records Vol. 3 (of 40) [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 8400]

1957 Encyclopedia of Jazz on Records Vol. 4 (of 40) [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 8401]

1957 Bartók "Sonata No. 2" Hindemith "Sonata in C" Stavinsky "Duo Concertante for Violin and Piano" [Decca Records catalogue no. 9980]

1957 Joe Burton Session [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 57098]

1958 Bing Crosby "Bing" [Decca Gold Label catalogue no. DX-151]

1958 Stravinsky "Firebird Suite / Chant du Rossignol" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9978]]

1958 Beethoven "Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor op. 37" [London Records catalogue no. CS 6096]

c1959 Contrasts in Hi-Fi [London Records catalogue no. LL 1708]

1959 "Moody Woody" [Everest Records]

early 1960s Vivaldi "The Four Seasons" [Decca Gold Label catalogue no. DL 79423]

c1960 Kostelanetz Conducts…[Columbia Records catalogue no. CL 786] signed Steinweiss

late 1960s Britten "Piano Concerto No. 1" Martin "Five Prludes" [Decca Gold Label catalogue no. DL 710133]

c1960 Richard Strauss "Ein Heldenleben" [Everest Records catalogue no. SDBR 3038]

late 1960s Liszt "Concerto No. 1" Saint-Saëns "Concerto No. 2" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 710084]

late 1960s Haydn "Quartet in E-Flat op. 33 No. 2 (Joke) / Quartet in D op. 76 No. 5" [Decca Gold Label catalogue no. DL 710117]

1961 Bing a Musical Autobiography [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9054] signed Piedra Blanca

1961 Webb Pierce's Golden Favorites [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 4110]

1963 Brazen Brass - New Sounds in Folk Music [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 4344]

1963 Al Hirt in New Orleans [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 757402]

1963 Pete Fountain and Al Hirt [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 757419]

1964 The Fabulous Peggy Lee [Originally Decca Gold Lable Series catalogue no. DL 4461]

1964 Invitation to Romance [Decca Records]

Note: I do not have dates for the remainder of the covers in this post or in part 6 (to follow), so they will inevitably be of mixed styles from different periods.

Beethoven "Sonata No. 5 in F Major op.24 (Spring) for Violin and Piano / Sonata No. 4 in A Minor op.23 for Violin and Piano" [Remington Records catalogue no. r.199.113]

Beethoven "Symphony No. 5 in C Minor op.67" [London Records catalogue no. CM 9011]

Beethoven "Trio in D Major op.70 No. 1 (Ghost) / Trio in E-Flat Major op. 70 No. 2" [Decca Records Gold Label catalogue no. DL 10064]

David Oistrakh violin "Tchaikovsky - Concerto in D Mjor op.35 for Violin and Orchestra [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 9755] signed Piedra Blanca

César Franck "Variations Symphoniques for Piano and Orchestra" Debussy " Prélude à l'apres-midi d'un Faune (Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun)" [Plymouth Records catalogue no. P-10-67] signed Steinweiss

Ella's Golden Favorites [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 4129]

Fred Waring and his Pennsylvanians "Program Time" [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8026]

Eric Coates conducts his London Suite again [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 4039] signed Piedra Blanca

Gala Russe [Decca Records catalogue no. DL10026]

Golden Favorites - Russ Morgan and his Orchestra [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 4292]

Golden Organ Favorites - Lenny Dee [Decca Records]

Golden Favorites - The 'Original" Ink Spots [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 4297]

Golden Favorites - Wayne King and his Orchestra [Decca Records catalogue no. 4309]

↧

Alex Steinweiss - part 6

March 31, 2013, 2:03 am

≫ Next: Vincent van Gogh - watercolours

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss – part 5

For full biographical notes on Alex Steinweiss see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 5 also.

This is part 6 of a 6-part post on the works of Alex Steinweiss. I'm afraid I do not have dates for any of the works in part 6, so inevitably there is a random sequence of styles and dates for these works, but I thought they were worth including:

J.S. Bach "Brandenburg Concertos" [Columbia Records] signed Steinweiss

Humperdinck "Hansel and Gretel" [Columbia Masterworks] signed Steinweiss

Invitation to the Waltz [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2069] signed Steinweiss

Joseph Szigeti "Brahms Violin Concerto" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4015] signed Steinweiss

Jackie Wilson "My Golden Favorites" [Brunswick Records catalogue no. BL 54058]

José Greco "Ballet" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9757]]

José Greco "Danzas Flamencas" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9758]]

Lily Pons Program [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-582] signed Steinweiss

Kern for Moderns [London Records catalogue no. LL 1279]

Manhatten Moods [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 2144] signed Steinweiss

Mandolins! [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 757342]

Masterpieces of the Dance Volume 3 [Cook Records catalogue no. 2066]

Memories [Columbia Records catalogue no. C-62] signed Steinweiss

Mendelssohn " Symphony No. 5 in D Major op. 107" Beethoven "Symphony No. 8 in F Major op.93 [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9726] signed Piedra Blanca

Mendelssohn "Concerto in E Minor for Violin and Orchestra op. 64" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4363] signed Steinweiss

Meyerbeer "Les Patineurs Ballet (The Skaters)" + Bliss "Checkmate" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no.ML 4362] signed Steinweiss

Mendelssohn "Symphony No. 4 in A Major op.90" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-733] signed Steinweiss

Mozart "Concerto in G Major k.216" Beethoven "Sonata No. 7 in C Minor for Violin and Piano op. 30 No. 2" [Columbia Masterworks] signed Steinweiss

Mozart "Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major k.467 / Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major k. 453" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9973] signed Piedra Blanca

Music for Romance [London Records catalogue no. LL 1148]

Music of Lecuona + String Time [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4361] signed Steinweiss

Music Plus! Volume 1 No. Eleven [Remington Records]

Mussorgsky "Pictures at an Exhibition" Wagner "Siegried Idyl" [Decca Gold Label Series]

My Golden Favorites - Lawrence Welk and his Champagne Music [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 57353]

Nelson Eddy in "Songs we Love" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4343] signed Steinweiss

Piatigorsky in "Russian Melodies" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-684] signed Steinweiss

One Dozen Roses [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8491]

Play a Polka! [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8441]

Rachmaninoff "Concerto No. 3 in D Minor for Piano and Orchestra op.30" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4369] signed Steinweiss

Ravel "Bolero / Alborado del Gracioso" Falla "The Three Cornered Hat" Weber-Berlioz "Invitation to the Waltz" [London Records catalogue no. CS6077]

Rawicz and Landauer "Ballet Memories on 2 Pianos" [London Records catalogue no. LL1269]

Red Foley's Golden Favorites [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 4107]

Richard Strauss "Elektra" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9723] signed Piedra Blanca

Risë Stevens "Sincerely Yours" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML-4179] signed Steinweiss

Saint-Saëns "Carnival of the Animals" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4355] signed Steinweiss

Rossini "Stabat Mater" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DX-132] signed Piedra Blabca

Schubert "Symphony No. 4 in C Minor / Symphony No. 5 in B Flat Major" [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. 9725] signed Piedra Blanca

Shostakovitch "Symphony No. 9 op. 70" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-688] signed Steinweiss

Showpieces for Orchestra Vol. 1 [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9727] signed Piedra Blanca

Tchaikovsky "Nutcracker Suite op. 71a" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. MM-714] signed Steinweiss

Stravinsky "Le Sacre du Printemps" [London Records catalogue no. LL 1730]

Stravinsky "Concerto for Piano and Winds" Bartók "Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion" [Decca Gols Label Series catalogue no. 9963] signed Piedra Blanca

Ted Heath plays Al Jolson Classics [London Records catalogue no. LL 1776]

The Ames Brothers [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 57338]

The London Baroque Ensemble… / Mozart [Decca Gold Label Series catalogue no. DL 9776] signed Piedra Blanca

The McGuire Sisters [Coral Records catalogue no. CRL 57349]

The Music of George Gershwin [London Records catalogue no. LL 1203]

Trapp Family Singers "Sad Am I Without Thee" [Decca Gols Label Series catalogue no. 9759]

Twilight Concert [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML 4311] signed Steinweiss

Twilight Concert Program No. 2 [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. ML4337] signed Steinweiss

Victor Young's Musical Sketchbook [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8140]

Virgil Thomson " 5 Portraits" [Columbia Masterworks catalogue no. X-255] signed Steinweiss

Whistle a Happy Tune! [Decca Records catalogue no. DL 8995]

Winifred Atwell piano…plays Gershwin [London Records catalogue no. LL 1749]

↧

Vincent van Gogh - watercolours

April 2, 2013, 1:36 am

≫ Next: Ivan Kramskoy - part 1

≪ Previous: Alex Steinweiss - part 6

Vincent van Gogh produced nearly 150 watercolours during his life. His watercolours were often used as field studies for their larger oil counterparts. At the age of 28 Vincent wrote the following in a letter to his brother Theo in December 1888:

"I came away from him with some painted studies and a few watercolours. They are not masterpieces, of course, yet I really believe that there is some soundness and truth in them, more at any rate than what I've done up to now. And so I reckon that I am now at the beginning of the beginning of doing something serious. And because I can now call on a couple of technical resources, that is to say, paint and brush, everything seems fresh again, as it were."

In the same letter he wrote:

"I wish you could see the two watercolours I have brought back with me, for you would realize that they are watercolours just like any other watercolours. They may still be full of imperfections, que soit, I am the first to say that I am still very dissatisfied with them, and yet they are quite different from what I have done before and look fresher and brighter. That doesn't alter the fact, however, that they must get fresher and brighter still, but one can't do everything one wants just like that. It will come little by little."

1879 Coalmine in the Borinage pencil & watercolour

1881 Boy Cutting Grass with a Sickle watercolour 47 x 61 cm

1881 Digger charcoal, black & green chalk, watercolour

1881 Peasant Sitting by the Fireplace (Worn Out) pen & ink, watercolour

1881 Scheveningen Woman Sewing watercolour

1881 Woman Mending Stockings black chalk & watercolour

1881 Scheveningen Woman pencil & watercolour

1881 Young Scheveningen Woman Knitting watercolour & gouache on paper

1882 Iron Mill in The Hague watercolour

1882 Four People on a Bench pen & ink, watercolour

1882 Fish-Drying Barn watercolour

1882 Miners in the Snow, Winter pen & ink, watercolour

1882 Orchard in Blossom with Two Figures, Spring pen & ink, watercolour

1882 Pollard Willow watercolour 36 x 56.5 cm

1882 Rooftops watercolour & white 39 x 55 cm

1882 The State Lottery Office watercolour 38 x 57 cm

1882 Scheveningen Women and Other People Under Umbrellas watercolour

1882 View of The Hague with the New Church pen & ink, watercolour

1882 Woman Miners Carrying Coal watercolour & white on paper

1882 Waiting Room watercolour

1882 Woman with Baby on her Lap, Half-Figure pencil, watercolour & white oil

1882 Woman with White Shawl in a Wood watercolour

1883 Landscape at Nightfall watercolour 41.7 x 54.1 cm

1883 View from the Window of Vincent's Studio in Winter watercolour 39 x 58 cm

1883 Drawbridge in Nieuw-Amsterdam watercolour 38.5 x 81 cm

1883 The Public Soup Kitchen pencil, black chalk watercolour

1885 The Parsonage Garden at Nuenen with Pond and Figures watercolour 38 x 49 cm

1885 Sunday in Eindhoven pen & ink, watercolour

1885 Sale of Building Scrap black chalk & watercolour

1885 Woman by a Hearth black chalk & watercolour

1887 Path in Montmartre with Sunflowers pencil, pen & ink, watercolour 31.6 x 24.1 cm

1887 Ramparts of Paris pencil, black chalk, gouache, watercolour

1887 Outskirts of Paris near Montmartre pencil, pen & ink, pastel, gouache, watercolour

1887 Street with People Walking and a Horse-car near the Ramparts of Paris pencil, pen & ink, watercolour 24.1 x 31.6 cm

1887 The Entrance of a Belvedere watercolour

1887 Road Running Beside the Paris Ramparts watercolour & white

1888 Alphonse Daudet's Mill in Fontevieille watercolour 30 x 50 cm

1888 Breton Women watercolour 60 x 73.7 cm

1888 Pink Peach Trees charcoal & watercolour

1888 The Langlois Bridge at Arles watercolour

1888 The Night Cafe in Arles watercolour 44.4 x 63.2 cm

1889 Corridor in Saint-Paul Hospital black chalk & gouache 61 x 47.5 cm

1889 Flowering Shrubs watercolour

1889 The Vestibule of the Asylum black chalk & gouache 61.6 x 47.1 cm

1889 Stone Steps in the Garden of the Asylum pencil, black chalk, ink & watercolour 63.1 x 45.6 cm

1889 Trees in the Garden of the Asylum watercolour 46.5 x 61.5 cm

1889 Window of Vincent's Studio at the Asylum black chalk & gouache 62 x 47.6 cm

1890 Old Vineyard with Peasant Woman pencil, & watercolour

1890 The Oise at Auvers pencil, gouache & diluted oil on paper 48 x 63 cm

↧

Ivan Kramskoy - part 1

April 4, 2013, 1:51 am

≫ Next: Ivan Kramskoy - part 2

≪ Previous: Vincent van Gogh - watercolours

1867 Self-Portrait (detail) oil on canvas 52.7 x 44 cm

Ivan Kramskoy (1837 – 1887) was a Russian painter and graphic artist. He was born in 1837 in Ostrogozhsk in south-western Russia. During his childhood Kramskoy independently studied drawing and later began working with watercolour. When he was 16 he worked as a colour-correction artist for a photographer. In 1856 he moved to St. Petersburg and continued to work with photographers. The following year he entered the Arts Academy. During his academy years he gathered the progressive youth around him. He was the head of the protest against painting the pieces ordered by the council.

Kramskoy himself began to mature as a portraitist. He often employed his favourite graphic technique, using sauce, bleach and Italian pencil. Using this method he drew portraits of other artists. His art technique corresponded well with the image of the intellectual democrat, a common character of his paintings such as “Self Portrait” (1867) (see above) and “Portrait of anagronomist M. E. Vyunnikov” (1868).

1868 Portrait of an agronomist M.E. Vyunnikov oil on canvas

In 1863-1868 Kramskoy taught at the Drawing School of the Artist Encouraging Society. By the end of the decade the St. Petersburg Team lost its unity and social status. Kramskoy left it and became one of the founders of the Peredvizhniki Society (The Comradeship of Moving Arts Exhibitions).

His prevailing success remained in portraiture. In the 1870-1880s, he created some of his best works, including a series of portraits of prominent people of the time such as Leo Tolstoy. During his lifetime, Kramskoy also executed many commissions for church paintings and portraits to earn his living. He died in 1887.

Russian Stamp from 2012 celebrating 175th anniversary of Kramskoy's birth

This is part 1 of a 2-part post on the works of Ivan Kramskoy:

1861 Prayer of Moses after the Israelites go through the Red Sea oil on canvas 142.6 x 105.7 cm

1866 Portrait of the Artist Nikolay Andreyevich Koshelev

1866-69 Sophia Kramskaya Reading oil on canvas 64 x 56 cm

1867 Portrait of a Woman

1867 Portrait of Princess Catherine Alekseevny Vasilchikova oil on paper

1868 The Portrait of a Peasant oil on canvas

1868 Portrait of artist and photographer Mikhail Borisovich Tulinova

1869 Portrait of A.P. Bogoliubov

c1870 Path in a Forest oil on canvas 46.7 x 67.3 cm

1871 Mermaids oil on canvas 88 x 132 cm

1871 Portrait of the Artist Fyodor Vasilyev oil on canvas 88.3 x 68.3 cm

1871 Portrait of (poet and artist) Taras Shevchenko oil on canvas 84 x 65 cm

1871 Somnambulant

1871 Portrait of the Artist Konstantin Savitsky oil on cardboard 42 x 33 cm

1872 Beekeeper oil on canvas 63 x 49 cm

1872 Books Got Her oil on canvas

1872 Christ in the Wilderness oil on canvas 180 x 210 cm

1872 Portrait of the Artist Arkhip Kuindzhi oil on canvas 35.8 x 28.6 cm

1872 Old Man with a Crutch oil on canvas 76.5 x 57.5 cm

1873 Portrait of Leo Tolstoy oil on canvas 98 x 79.5 cm

1873 Portrait of (the painter) Ivan Shishkin oil on canvas 110.5 x 78 cm

1873 Girl with a Loose Braid oil on canvas 57.2 x 48.9 cm

1873 The Miller oil on canvas 73.5 x 58 cm

1874 Forester oil on canvas 84 x 62 cm

1874 Outraged Jewish Boy oil on canvas

1874 Portrait of Ivan Aleksandrovich Goncharov

1874 Self-Portrait oil on canvas

1875 Portrait of the Artist Mikhail Dyakonov oil on canvas

1875 Portrait of the poet Yakov Polonsky oil on canvas

1875 Portrait of Sofia Nikolaevna and Sophia Ivanovna Archaeology (Wife and Daughter of the Artist) oil on canvas

1876 Portrait of Dmitry Vasilyevich Grigorovich oil on canvas 86 x 68 cm

1876 Portrait of Pavel Tretyakov oil on canvas 59 x 49 cm

1876 Portrait of Vera Nikolaevna Tretyakova oil on canvas 226 x 148 cm

1876 Portrait of sculptor Mark Matveevitch Antokolsky

1876 Village Yard in France watercolour 24 x 31.5 cm

1876 Portrait of Vera Nikolaevna Tretyakova oil on canvas 226 x 148 cm

1877 Portrait of the poet Nikolai Nekrasov oil on canvas 75 x 55 cm

1878 Portrait of Sergei Timofeevich Aksakov

1878 Nikolay Nekrasov in the period of his "Last Songs" oil on canvas 105 x 89 cm

1878 D. I. Mendeleev oil on canvas

1878 Portrait of the artist Alexander Dmitrievich Litovchenko

↧

Ivan Kramskoy - part 2

April 6, 2013, 1:31 am

≫ Next: Niko Pirosmani

≪ Previous: Ivan Kramskoy - part 1

Portrait of Ivan Kramskoy by Nikolay Yaroshenko 1874 watercolour 28 x 23 cm

Ivan Kramskoy (1837 – 1887) was a Russian painter and graphic artist. For biographical notes on Kramskoy, and for earlier works, see part 1. This is part 2 of a 2-part post on Ivan Kramskoy:

1878 Portrait of U. F. Samarin oil on canvas 87 x 69 cm

1879 Portrait of singer Elizabeth Andreevny Lavrovsky, on stage at the Assembly of Nobility oil on canvas

1879 Portrait of (the writer) Mikhail Evgrafovich Saltykov (N. Shchedrin) oil on canvas 88 x 68 cm

1879 Adrian Viktorovich Prahova oil on canvas

1879 Zhukovka watercolour

1880 Portrait of Dr. Sergei Petrovich Botkin

1880 Portrait of Anatoly Kramskoy, the Artist's Son oil on canvas 73.5 x 86.5

1880 Moonlit Night oil on canvas 178.8 x 135.2 cm

1880 Portrait of Empress Maria Fiodorovna born Princess Dagmar of Denmark (Wife of Russian Tsar Alexander III) oil on canvas 55 x 47 cm

c1880 Portrait of Maria Fyodorovna, born Princess Dagmar of Denmark (Wife of Russian Tsar Alexander III) oil on canvas

1886 Portrait of Alexander III oil on canvas 129 x 92 cm

A fan from the possessions of Maria Fyodorovna painted by Kramskoy in 1886 with portraits of Alexander III and their children Nikolai, Georgi, Mikhail & Olga. Hermitage Museum St Petersburg

1880 Portrait of the painter Ivan Shishkin 116 x 84 cm

c1880 Veranda watercolour

c1880 Portrait of S.I. Kramskoy watercolour

1881 Portrait of Alexey Suvorin oil on canvas 109 88 cm

1882 Girl with a Cat (Portrait of Sophia Kramskaya) oil on canvas 71 x 58 cm

1882 Kramskoi Ivan Mina Moiseev Sun oil on canvas

1882 Laughter (Hail, king of Judah) oil on canvas

1882 Portrait of Barbara Kirillovna Lemokh

1882 Portrait of Sophia Ivanovna Kramskoy, daughter of the artist

1882 Portrait of Nikolay Kramskoy, the Artist's Son oil on canvas

1883 Peasant with a Bridle oil on canvas 125 x 93 cm

1883 Actor Alexander Lensky Pavlovich as Petruchio in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew oil on canvas

1883 Portrait of Sergei Kramskoy, Son of the Artist oil on canvas

1883 Portrait of a Woman oil on canvas 75.5 x 99 cm

1883 Portrait of a Woman oil on canvas 75 x 99 cm

1883 Portrait of Sergei Kramskoy, Son of the Artist oil on canvas

1883 Siverskaya watercolour

1884 Iva Kramskoy Working on a Painting of his Daughter oil on cardboard

1884 Inconsolable Grief oil on canvas 228 x 141 cm

1884 Bouquet of Flowers oil on canvas

1884 Portrait of a Woman oil on canvas

1884 Portrait of Olga Afanasiyevna Raftopulo

1885 Portrait of Yuri Stepanovich Nechaev-Maltsev

1885 Portrait of Philosopher Vladimir Solovyov oil on canvas 113 x 94 cm

1886 Herodias

1886 Portrait of the astronomer Otto Struve Vasilyevich oil on canvas

1886 Astrologer watercolour

1887 Children in the Forest

n.d. Portrait of a Woman watercolour

↧

Niko Pirosmani

April 8, 2013, 1:40 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha – part 1

≪ Previous: Ivan Kramskoy - part 2

1900 Self-Portrait oil on oilcloth 38 x 49 cm

Following on from the sophisticated and realistic portraits by Russian artist Ivan Kramskoy, I thought it would be good time to show the works of a C19th naïve artist Georgian artist Niko Pirosmani as a contrast.

Pirosmani was the subject of a stylish and stylised film by Giorgi Shengelaya, made in 1969, that won the Grand Prix at the Chicago Film Festival in 1972. I loved this film when it came out and saw it at the cinema at least four times. It employed stylised scenes where people were posed straight at the camera, emulating the style of Pirosmani's paintings.

Niko Pirosmani was born in the Georgian village of Mirzaani to a peasant family of farming smallholders. He was later orphaned and left in the care of his two elder sisters. They all moved to the capital Tbilisi in 1870. In 1872 he worked as a servant to wealthy families, and learned to read and write Russian and Georgian. In 1876 he returned to Mirzaani and worked as a herdsman.

He gradually taught himself to paint. One of his specialties was painting directly into black oilcloth. In 1882 he opened a painting workshop with self-taught George Zaziashvili, making signboards. He also worked for shopkeepers in Tbilisi, creating signboards, paintings and portraits as commissions.

In the 1910s he won the critical enthusiasm of the Russian poet Mikhail Le-Dantyu and the artist Kirill Zdanevich and his brother Ilia Zdanevich. Ilia Zhdanevich wrote a letter about Pirosmani to the newspaper Zakavkazskaia Rech, which it published in 1913. He also undertook to publicise Pirosmani's painting in Moscow. The Moscow newspaper Moskovskaia Gazeta wrote about the exhibition Mishenwhere self-taught painters exhibited, among them four works by Pirosmani. Critics writing later in the same newspaper were impressed with his talent. In the same year an article about Pirosmani and his art was published in Georgian newspaper Temi.

The Society of Georgian Painters, founded in 1916 by Dito Shevardnadze, invited Pirosmani to its meetings and began to take him up, but his relations with the society were always uneasy. His continuing poverty, compounded by the economic problems caused by the First World War, meant that his life ended with his work effectively unrecognised. In April 1918 he died of malnutrition and liver failure.

Georgian banknote featuring Niko Pirosmani

Interest in Pirosmani increased in 1950's after many books were published in Georgia, Russia and other countries. Biographical film and plays were created, musical compositions were composed. His paintings were exhibited in distant countries, like the Soviet Union and Western Europe. A monument to Pirosmani was installed in Tbilisi, and a museum was opened in Mirzaani. Today, the majority of his works are shown in the Art Museum of Georgia.

c1905 Giraffe oil on oilcloth 139 x 111 cm

1905 Ortachali Beauty oil on oilcloth 52 x 117 cm

c1905 Woman with a Mug of Beer oil on oilcloth

c1905 Gate Keeper oil on oilcloth 101 x 47 cm

1906 Feast with Barrel Organist Datico oil on oilcloth 106 x 198 cm

1906 A Georgian Woman with Tambourine oil on oilcloth

1906 Portrait of Alexander Garanov oil on oilcloth 109 x 90 cm

1906 Fisherman among Rocks oil on oilcloth 53 x 126 cm

1906 The Feast of Five Princes oil on oilcloth

1907 Rant oil on oilcloth 113 x 177 cm

1907 Family Feast oil on oilcloth 116 x 171 cm

1908 Fisherman in a Red Shirt oil on oilcloth 113 x 93 cm

1909 Actress Margarita oil on oilcloth 117 x 94 cm

1913 Portrait of Ilya Zdanevich oil on oilcloth

1917 She-Bear with Two Cubs

I do not have dates for the remainder of these works:

A Boy Carrying Food oil on oilcloth 82 x 48 cm

A Large Wine Jug in the Forest oil on oilcloth

A Peasant Woman with her Son oil on oilcloth 75 x 56 cm

Cold Beer (sign) oil on oilcloth

Childless Millionaire and the Poor with Children oil on oilcloth 114 x 156 cm

Cold Beer (sign) oil on oilcloth

Company Bego 66 x 102 cm

Cook oil on oilcloth 106 x 46cm

Company Bego

Feast at Gvimradze oil on oilcloth 123 x 210 cm

Father and Son

Easter Lamb oil on oilcloth

Feast in the Grape Arbor oil on oilcloth 140 x 114 cm

Feast of Four Residents

Firewood Seller oil on oilcloth

Girl with a Ball oil on cardboard 75 x 55 cm

Girl with a Balloon oil on oilcloth

Fruit Stall oil on oilcloth

Healer on a Donkey oil on oilcloth 89 x 100 cm

Little Kinko oil on oilcloth

Lamb and Easter Table with Flying Angels oil on oilcloth

Prince with a Horn of Wine oil on oilcloth

Ram oil on oilcloth 49 x 80 cm

Peasant Woman with Children Going for Water

Roe with a landscape in the background

Roe Deer by a Creek oil on oilcloth

Sow with Piglets oil on cardboard

Sister of Mercy

St. George Anchorite

Still Life oil on oilcloth

Tatar - Camel Driver oil on oilcloth

The Sister and Brother oil 120 x 102 cm

The Son of a Rich Kintos oil on oilcloth 106 x 46 cm

Threshing Yard, Evening oil on oilcloth

White Cow on a Black Background oil on oilcloth 80 x 100 cm

Wine Makers

Woman with Flowers oil on oilcloth 111 x 52 cm

Woman Carrying Eggs oil on cardboard

↧

Alphonse Mucha – part 1

April 10, 2013, 2:10 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha – part 2

≪ Previous: Niko Pirosmani

A lot of work to get through here, this is going to be 12-part post, so I hope some of you at least like his work or are happy to see a large cross-section of his output. Because of the size I’ll put a new post up each day.

Biographical facts on Mucha sourced from Wikipedia:

Alphonse (Alfons) Mucha (1860 – 1939) was a Czech painter and decorative artist born in 1860 born in the town of Ivančice, Moravia. He is best known for his luxurious poster and product designs, which encapsulate the Art Nouveau style. Contemporary interest in his work was revived in 1980 after an exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris.

Mucha attended high school in the Moravian capital of Brünn (Brno), after which he worked at decorative painting jobs in Moravia, mostly painting theatrical scenery. In 1879 he moved to Vienna to work for a leading Viennese theatrical design company, while informally furthering his artistic education. In 1881 he returned to Moravia, to do freelance decorative and portrait painting. Count Karl Khuen of Mikulov hired Mucha to decorate Hrušovany Emmahof Castle with murals, and was impressed enough to agree to sponsor Mucha's formal training at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts.

He moved to Paris in 1887 and continued his studies at Académie Julian and Académie Colarossi. In addition to his studies, he worked at producing magazine and advertising illustrations. Around Christmas 1894, Mucha happened to drop into a print shop where there was a sudden and unexpected need for a new advertising poster for a play starring Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous actress in Paris, at the Théâtre de la Renaissance on the Boulevard Saint-Martin. Mucha volunteered to produce a lithographed poster within two weeks, and on 1 January 1895, the advertisement for the play Gismonda by Victorien Sardou appeared on the streets of the city. It was an overnight sensation and announced the new artistic style and its creator to the citizens of Paris.Bernhardt was so satisfied with the success of this first poster that she entered into a 6 year contract with Mucha.

1894 Poster for Victorien Sardou's Gismonda starring Sarah Bernhardt at the Théâtre de la Renaissance, Paris 210 x 74.2 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

In contrast with contemporary poster makers he used pale pastel colours. The 1900 Universal Exhibition in Paris spread the "Mucha style" internationally, of which Mucha said "I think the Exposition Universelle made some contribution toward bringing aesthetic values into arts and crafts." He decorated the Bosnia and Herzegovina Pavilion and collaborated in the Austrian Pavilion.

Mucha married Maria Chytilová in 1906. The couple visited the U.S. from 1906 to 1910, during which time their daughter, Jaroslava, was born in New York City. They also had a son, Jiri (1915 - 1991). In America Mucha expected to earn money to fund his nationalistic projects to demonstrate to Czechs that he had not "sold out". He was supported by millionaire Charles R. Crane, who used his fortune to help promote revolutions and, after meeting Thomas Masaryk, Slavic nationalism.

Mucha and his family returned to Europe and settled in Prague, where he decorated the Theatre of Fine Arts, created the murals in the Mayor's Office at the Municipal House, and other landmarks around the city. When Czechoslovakia won its independence after World War I, Mucha designed the new postage stamps, banknotes, and other government documents for the new state (some examples to come in a later post).

The rising tide of fascism in the late 1930s led to Mucha's works, as well as his Slavic nationalism, being denounced in the press as 'reactionary'. When German troops marched into Czechoslovakia in 1939, Mucha was among the first people to be arrested by the Gestapo. During the course of his interrogation, the aging artist fell ill with pneumonia. Though eventually released, he never recovered from the strain of this event, or from seeing his homeland invaded and overcome. He died in Prague on July 14 1939, of a lung infection.

At the time of his death, Mucha's style was considered outdated. His son, author Jiri Mucha, devoted much of his life to writing about him and bringing attention to his art. In his own country, the new authorities were not interested in Mucha. His Slav Epic was rolled and stored for twenty-five years before being shown in Moravsky Krumlov and only recently has a Mucha museum appeared in Prague, run by his grandson, John Mucha.

This is part 1 of a 12-part post on the works of Alphonse Mucha. Part 2 tomorrow.

In 1892 Mucha began giving drawing lessons in his studio. These classes, which become known as ‘Cours Mucha’ were so successful that he was later asked to teach at the Académie Colarossi. From 1898, he also ran a drawing course at James McNeill Whistler’s Académie Carmen.

↧

Alphonse Mucha – part 2

April 11, 2013, 2:12 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha – part 3

≪ Previous: Alphonse Mucha – part 1

This part looks solely at Mucha's lithographs for 'Ilsée, Princess of Tripoli'. Mucha had only three months to prepare 134 coloured lithographs before the edition was due to go to print. It was given an enthusiastic reception by the critics. Czech and German editions were later published in 1901 in Prague.

This is part 2 of a 12-part post on the works of Alphonse Mucha. For biographical notes on Mucha, and for earlier works, see part 1. Part 3 tomorrow.

Majority of images in this part courtesy of Jaam's Photo Albums.

↧

Alphonse Mucha – part 3

April 12, 2013, 2:11 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha - part 4

≪ Previous: Alphonse Mucha – part 2

Alphonse Mucha in 1906 photo by George R. Lawrence Co., Chicago.

This is part 3 of a 12-part post on the works of Alphonse Mucha. For biographical notes on Mucha see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 2 also. Part 4 tomorrow.

↧

Alphonse Mucha - part 4

April 13, 2013, 2:30 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha - part 5

≪ Previous: Alphonse Mucha – part 3

This is part 4 of a 12-part post on the works of Alphonse Mucha. For biographical notes on Mucha see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 3 also. Part 5 tomorrow.

1899 Le Pater

Mucha considered Le Pater his printed masterpiece, and referred to it in the January 5, 1900 issue of The Sun Newspaper (New York) as the thing he had "put [his] soul into". Printed on December 20, 1899, Le Pater was Mucha's occult examination of the themes of The Lord's Prayer and only 510 copies were produced.

1899 Moët & Chandon menu © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris


1899 Moët & Chandon menu © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Poster for 'Hamlet' Sarah Bernhardt at the Theatre Sarah Bernhardt lithograph 205.7 x 76.5 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Poster for 'Oesterreich' World Fair Paris 1900 lithograph 98.5 x 68 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Poster for 'Nectar Liquer Superfine' lithograph (also in 'Documents Décoratifs' 1902) © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Poster for 'Sylvanis Essence Perfume' lithograph © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Primrose and Feather © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Primrose © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

1899 Feather © Alphonse Mucha Estate-Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York-ADAGP, Paris

↧

Alphonse Mucha - part 5

April 14, 2013, 1:36 am

≫ Next: Alphonse Mucha - part 6

≪ Previous: Alphonse Mucha - part 4

1899 Self-Portrait oil on board 32 x 21 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

This is part 5 of a 12-part post on the works of Alphonse Mucha. For biographical notes on Mucha see part 1. For earlier works see parts 1 - 4 also. Part 6 tomorrow.

1899 'The Passing Wind Takes Youth Away' lithograph © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 'Cloches de Noël et de Pâques' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 'Cloches de Noël et de Pâques' photographic study © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 'Cloches de Noël et de Pâques' study © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Combinations Ornamentale

His pattern books—including Combinaisons Ornementales (Ornamental Combinations) produced in collaboration with Maurice Verneuil (1869–1942) and Georges Auriol, spread art nouveau design.

1900 Illustration in Cocorico Magazine lithography © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Cover of 'Au Quartier Latin' lithography © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Cover of 'Clio' by Anatole France © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Poster for 'Flirt' Biscuits Lefèvre-Utile' lithograph 64 x 30 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Official Guide to the Austrian Pavilion at 'L'Exposition Universelle de Paris' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Bosnian pavilion booklet cover for the 'L'Exposition Universelle de Paris' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1903 Cover of 'Paris Illustre' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1907 Cover of 'The American Perfumer' litography © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Photographic study © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Photographic study © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Reproduction of the clip corsage stand of the jeweller Georges Fouquet at the 'Exposition Universelle in Paris' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Allegory of Bosnia Herzegovina tempera on canvas 641 x 255.7 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 Poster for 'La Tosca' with Sarah Bernhardt lithograph 104 x 38 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones 'Le Rubis' (Ruby) lithograph 67.2 x 30 cm) © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones 'L'Amèthyste' (Amethyst) lithograph 67.2 x 30 cm) © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones 'L'Amèthyste' (Amethyst) Study of Drapery gouache 61 x 46 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones 'L'Èmeraude' (Emerald) lithograph 67.2 x 30 cm) © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Precious Stones photographic study in Mucha's stdio Rue du Val de Grâce, Paris © Mucha Trust

1900 The Precious Stones 'La Topaze (Topaz) lithograph 67.2 x 30 cm) © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Seasons © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Seasons 'Spring' lithograph 73 x 32 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Seasons 'Summer' lithograph 73 x 32 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Seasons 'Autumn' lithograph 73 x 32 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900 The Seasons 'Winter' lithograph 73 x 32 cm © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

1900-01 Postcards published by F. Champenois, Paris:

00 Pouch design © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'January' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Souvenir of Belle Jardiniere, 2 Rue du Pont Neuf, Paris © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'February' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'March' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Louis Einmahl & Cie, Cologne © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Original artwork for 'March' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'April' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Pâtes Alimentaires Supérieures, Albertiny & Cie, Nice © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'May' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'June' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'July' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'August' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'September' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'October' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'November' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Months of the Year 'December' © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

Cordonnerie André, Bordeaux © Alphonse Mucha Estate/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York/ADAGP, Paris

↧

Latest Images