Edward Penfield received his training at the Art Students League in New York City. He went on to become the art director at Harper's magazine and also designed a series of monthly posters for Harper's that won enormous critical acclaim. By the turn of the century, Penfield's reputation as an important graphic designer was assured.
Penfield took full advantage of recent improvements in colour printing to create works that were effective vehicles of communication and also aesthetically engaging. Less concerned with the dramatic curving lines of Art Nouveau than his contemporary Will Bradley, Penfield synthesised a number of stylistic sources in his work, including Japanese prints and those of French artists such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Jules Chéret.
After leaving Harper's in 1901, Penfield continued to be extremely active in both design and illustration. In addition to posters for other magazines including Scribner's and
Collier's, he executed illustrations and covers for many books and generated designs for numerous commercial concerns. Together with Will Bradley, Penfield was instrumental in creating the rich fabric of American graphic design work in the 1890s.
Collier's, he executed illustrations and covers for many books and generated designs for numerous commercial concerns. Together with Will Bradley, Penfield was instrumental in creating the rich fabric of American graphic design work in the 1890s.
Biography from Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC
This is part 4 of a 7-part series on the works of Edward Penfield:
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster February 1899 colour lithograph 45.1 x 21.3 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster March 1899 colour lithograph 39 x 27.3 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster April 1899 colour lithograph 25.6 x 23.4 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster May 1899 colour lithograph 25.6 x 23.4 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster June 1899 colour lithograph 33.2 x 26 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster July 1899 colour lithograph 25.1 x 32.1 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1899 Harper's Magazine Poster August 1899 colour lithograph 31.3 x 29 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York ( This is the last Harper's poster Penfield did ) |
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| 1899c The Northampton Cycle Company poster colour lithograph 105.3 x 71.4 cm |
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| 1900 A Kentucky Breaking Cart colour lithograph 40 x 57 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1900 Exercising Cart colour lithograph 40 x 57 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1900 Harper's Weekly Poster 24 November 1900 colour lithograph 41 x 29 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1900-10 Metropolitan for July colour poster 53 x 36 cm Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-10 Scribner's for January Poster 59 x 38 cm Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-20c Metropolitan July colour lithograph 38 x 31 cm Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25 Hart, Schaffner & Marx clothing watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25 Hart, Schaffner & Marx clothing watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25 Hart, Schaffner & Marx clothing watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25 Hart, Schaffner & Marx clothing watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25 The Overshadowed Game watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1900-25c Edward Penfield's bookplate |
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| 1900s Scribners Christmas Number Poster 58 x 37 cm Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine August 3 1901 colour lithograph 38 x 25.5 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine August 31 Labor Day Number New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine July 6 1901 Fourth-of-July Number colour lithograph 33.5 x 25 cm |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine June 1 1901 Memorial Number colour lithograph 38.5 x 27 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine May 18 1901 Industrial Number colour lithograph 37 x 25.5 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine May 25 1901 Pan-American Exposition colour lithograph 37.5 x 25 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine October 12 1901 Sporting Number colour lithograph 37.5 x 26 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1901 Collier's Magazine September 21 1901 Two colour lithograph 38 x 25.5 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1902 Collier's Magazine January 25 1902 Greater New-York colour lithograph 41 x 28 cm New York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1902 Collier's Illustrated Weekly Magazine Poster November 15 1902 colour lithograph 35 x 25 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1902 Good Housekeeping magazine April 1902 Easter Issue |
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| 1902 Man and Woman Golfers colour wash, pen and ink Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1902 Outing Magazine Poster colour print 52 x 33 cm Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1902 Tennis Match watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1902 The Saturday Evening Post June 7 1902 The College Man's Number |
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| 1902c Couple in a Breaking Cart colour lithograph Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1902 Christmas at Café Spaander watercolour Library of Congress, Washington, DC |
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| 1902 Collier's Magazine January 25 1902 colour lithograph 41 x 28 cm York Public Library Digital Collection |
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| 1902 Collier's Magazine Poster November 15 1902 Automobile Number colour lithograph 35 x 25 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1903 Collier's Magazine May 16 1903 colour lithograph |
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| 1903 Collier's Magazine October 3 1903 Harvesting Wheat in the West |
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| 1903 Collier's Weekly Magazine Poster 14 November 1903 colour lithograph 40 x 28 cm Digital Commonwealth Massachusetts Collections Online, Boston Public Library, MA |
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| 1903 The Exiles and Other Stories published by Harper and Brothers lithograph 38 x 26.5 cm The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York |
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| 1903 The Saturday Evening Post August 8 1903 lithograph |
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| 1903 The Saturday Evening Post August 22 1903 lithograph |
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| 1903 The Saturday Evening Post October 31 1903 lithograph |