Howard Pyle, His Students, and His Legacy

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Main body
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

The greatest part of illustrators is regarded as fine artists who are devoted to figuration. However, there are outright differences between those who just paint and those who intend to render the idea and purpose of the drawings. To be a diligent illustrator is not an easy matter and to reach the thrust of illustrating, one should study its origin and founders. Thus, Howard Pyle is considered the founder of American illustration since he managed to involve narration in his painting. He had many followers who tried to inherit his unsurpassed skills.

Main body

Howard Pyle was the eldest child in the family where creativity and love of painting were encouraged. From his childhood, he was fond of illustrated books with captivating images. Later, he attended the Van der Weilens School of Art in Philadelphia where he was taught to paint learning classical composition and fine art. His skills and artistic skills developed under the great impact of other well-known painters of nineteenth-century such as Frederick Church and Thomas Cole (Heller et al. 32). Along with advent of the twentieth century, there observed the emergence of the photography art. That invention significantly contributed to the development of the illustration all over the world and raised the question of whether it was reasonable to paint. Pyle’s response to the innovation was revealed through the appearance of his own art movement which he called picture making. To be more exact, he used this device as the reference for creating his own pictures. After all, a picture served as a kind of “freeze-frame” that helped to catch the wanted moment (Heller et al. 33).

Considering Pyle’s approach in more detail, the illustrator managed to establish the interaction between a picture and a viewer. In his drawings, each line and each stroke and nuance disclosed the emotion and created the action so that that a viewer was able to pursue the core idea of the illustration. Hence, Pyle’s goal was to tell the consistent story as if it were accompanied by the words (Silverman, 157). So, the peculiarity of his method lies in focusing on the imagination and the need to recreate the picture rather than in concentrating on the mechanical devices and techniques. Moreover, his main task was also to get into a thorough study of the tradition of painting and its connection with the current movement and streams. For instance, while conveying the Arthurian tales, he paid a greater attention to study of artistry traditions and history (Mattingly 118). That encouraged him to image the dramatic and historic episodes more properly. In addition, by means of illustration Pyle intended to shape the content of his books for him to convey the instance of conflict of triumph and surrender contributing to the enlivenment of the social conditions of a tale. In that way, he strived to connect history with the present moment.

In order to prove the validity of narration in his illustration he had no choice but to open his own school of art known as the Brandywine School. He accepted twelve students and determined the apprenticeship for them. His teaching implied the establishment of the new vision of American art and illustration. Thus, the students were not taught to gain experience but to rely only on their imagination. Howard Pyle insisted: “My objective is that they should be fitted for any kind of art” (Heller et al., 35).

Howard Pyle was a real mentor for his students and tried to put them in contact with the respectable editors and the leading magazines as soon as they were ready for that. Hence, the illustrator always set high standards and a predominantly imaginative approach to painting. As a result, most of the students were succeeded in establishing fruitful careers owing to their outstanding teachers. Howard was sure that only diligence and a positive emotional charge would lead their students to a successful path (Silverman 156). Therefore, the illustrator established those standards for the several generations of his students. In their turn, his students considered him as a visionary talented artist rather than as a highly paid illustrator.

One of Pyle’s most famous students was N. C. Wyeth. The works of Wyeth were highly assessed by collectors from Somerville and Manning who were interested in buying one of his works. Besides, Brandywine school gained popularity among other famous collectors who sponsored the exhibitions (Silverman, 210).

The works of his students gradually appeared in books and famous magazines and were highly appraised by the audience. The creation of photoengraving simplified the reproduction of paintings. As a result, there observed an increase in the publications with more pictures for less money so that illustrators became rich much quicker. Thus, Howard Pyle’s annual revenue was near $50,000. He gradually interfered with a circle of outstanding politicians such as Theodore Roosevelt, Henry Cabot Lodge, Oliver Wendell Homes, and Woodrow Wilson (Heller, 34).

Among the most famous of Pyle’s works, one can single out the reproduction of his “Books of Pirates” (1987) where he depicted the crashed sailor that stayed alive and gone with a storm to the seacoast (Raizman 126). Other his works were devoted to the description of battles such as “The Battle of Nashville” (Winans, 2001) and “The Fight on Lexington Common ” or some adventures like in the pictures designed for the “The story of King Arthur and His Knights” and “The merry adventures of Robin Good” In general, the main subject of his works was escape and fantasy. The painting revealed the spirit of danger and anticipation; all the heroes and heroines were imaged in the action. Pyle’s illustrations were like links in the chain of events. They filled the gap that cannot be filled with the reading.

In spite of the fact that photography has captured the market of magazines and newspapers and reduced the demand for the illustrations, the publishing houses continued to offer the illustrated books to the readers. Furthermore, Pyle’s works appealed to a wide audience and were still acknowledged by his readers and supporters since Pyle as well as his students strongly believed that picture-making could not replace a fine manual work of a skillful artist.

Conclusion

Nowadays, the art of illustration returns and is more appreciated by the people despite the constant emergence of modern techniques. Current society is getting bored with picture-making and is more inclined to refer to real art. In addition, the books with illustrations of high quality are of greater value rather than the books with hackneyed drawings deprived of soul and life. That is why, the illustration business is in high demand among the current customers.

Works Cited

Heller, Steven & Arisman, Marshall. Inside the business of illustration. US: Allworth Communications, Inc., 2004.

Mattingly, Paul H. Suburbian Landscapes: Culture and Politics in a New York metropolitan community. US: JHU Press, 2001.

Raizman, David History of Modern Design: Graphics and products since the Industrial Revolution Laurence King Publishing, 2003.

Silverman, Sharon Hernes. Brandywine Valley: the informed traveler’s guide. Stackpole Books, 2004.

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Howard Pyle, His Students, and His Legacy

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