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Edward Penfield - Four men riding on top of a carriage being drawn by four horses
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Edward Penfield

Edward Penfield was an American illustrator in the era known as the "Golden Age of American Illustration" and he is considered the father of the American poster. His work has been included in almost every major book on American Illustration or the history of the poster. He is also a major figure in the evolution of graphic design.

He was born June 2, 1866 in Brooklyn, New York to Ellen Lock Moore and Josiah B. Penfield. He first studied at New York's Art Students League. He worked under George de Forest Brush, who was known for his romantic scenes of American Indian life. He first worked for Harper's Weekly and later became art director. He developed his own unique style of simplified figures with bold outlines in settings free of extraneous detail. He believed, "A design that needs study is not a poster, no matter how well executed." He wrote and published a book titled Holland Sketches, which was published by Scribner's in 1907.

Penfield lived in New Rochelle, New York, a popular art colony among actors, writers and artists of the period. The community was most well known for its unprecedented number of prominent American illustrators. He was one of the founding members of the New Rochelle Art Association which was organized in 1912.

His posters were bold and stood out from a distance with great clarity. As artists like Alphonse Mucha, Théophile Steinlen and Toulouse-Lautrec popularized the poster in Europe, Penfield accomplished the same feat in the United States. For his posters, Penfield utilized simple shapes and a limited palette of colors that lent themselves to the primitive methods of reproduction of the era.

More Artworks by Edward Penfield (View all 204 Artworks)

The Saturday evening post, November 24, 1906

The Saturday evening post, November 24, 1906 (1906)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Man and woman sit in a crowded café looking over a crowd with the man pointing with a cane

Man and woman sit in a crowded café looking over a crowd with the man pointing with a cane (1890-1920)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s Christmas

Harper’s Christmas (1897)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s weekly, a journal of civilization

Harper’s weekly, a journal of civilization (1900)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Galakton, a nourishing food for infants, invalids, nursing mothers, & the aged

Galakton, a nourishing food for infants, invalids, nursing mothers, & the aged (1890)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s October

Harper’s October (1896)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
A Kodak Christmas

A Kodak Christmas (1890-1907)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Cadet days, a story of West Point by Capt. Charles King

Cadet days, a story of West Point by Capt. Charles King (1894)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Cornell

Cornell (1908)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s June

Harper’s June (1894)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s January

Harper’s January (1895)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Posters Calendar 1897

Posters Calendar 1897 (1897)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Collier’s, the national weekly

Collier’s, the national weekly (1913)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Collier’s, Industrial Number

Collier’s, Industrial Number (1901)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
Harper’s May

Harper’s May (1897)

Edward Penfield (American, 1866 - 1925)
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