The golden age of American illustration refers to a period stretching from the end of the 19th century and into the middle of the twentieth century (ca. 1880-1930, depending on who you ask) when a confluence of factors resulted in the elevation of illustration from a commercial enterprise to a fine-art form. On the one hand, advances in printing technology allowed publishers to create prints of superior quality on an unprecedented scale. And America’s burgeoning railroad and postal systems made it possible to distribute those prints nationwide - increasing the audience for advertising, magazines, and literature exponentially. Moreover, radio (invented in 1895) was a brand new technology, and television would not be invented until thirty years later - thus magazines, books, and newspapers became the primary sources of entertainment for America’s growing (and increasingly literate) middle class.

Once advertisers and publishers realized the dramatic increase in sales that premium illustrations could effect - once they understood that a picture really is worth a thousand words - they began to seek artists who could produce those illustrations. This demand for illustrators was not lost on budding artists, and many responded by eschewing careers in the traditional art market for the commercial market - where they could actually make a living. Incentivizing this change was the public's enthusiasm for their favorite artists. The most popular illustrators enjoyed a level of celebrity that today is reserved for television and movie stars.

The acceptance of illustration art as a fine-art form catalyzed this process. Howard Pyle, who is often credited as being the father of American illustration, helped to formalize illustration art when he opened the country’s first school of illustration - the Drexel Institute (he also later founded the Howard Pyle School of Illustration Art). Now young artists had a place where they could receive training specifically in illustration. Pyle was a major influence in the careers of the best illustrators of the time - Maxfield Parrish included.

The convergence of these trends - the increase in demand for beautiful illustrations, the advances in technology and transportation, and the elevation of illustration to an art form - gave rise to an era dominated by artists who are still celebrated today. N.C. Wyeth, Jessie Wilcox Smith, Norman Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish, and Joseph Leyendecker are but a few of the artists whose work not only entertained American audiences, but also defined American culture. The pieces they created both informed and reflected this country’s identity at a time when America was emerging as a modern nation and a global power. The images that these artists gifted us with are our heritage and our home. I am honored to be able to offer a sampling of that heritage at The Gilded Prints.