Thursday, October 11, 2007

Thursday Thirteen - 27 - 13 of My Favorite Illustrators

Tomorrow night, my husband and I will be flying into Toronto for a week and a half of visiting his family, so there's lots to do here to get ready. I don't know whether I'll have internet access or not - my blogging may be sporadic or non-existent for awhile.

But until then, here are some of my favorite works by illustrators I love. Why aren't these pieces of art? Well, in my opinion, they are. But in art circles, commercial art is often referred to as illustration. Rather like the romance novel in the literary world.

Let's have a leisurely gaze at some visually stunning pieces:

1 - Theodor Seuss Geisel, or Dr. Seuss

An early favorite!

















2 - Pauline Baynes

Mr. Tumnus from 'The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'












3 - Aubrey Beardsley



















4 - Edward Gorey

The creator of 'The Gashleycrumb Tinies'
















5 - Gustave Dore

'Paradise Lost 4'




















6 - Greg & Tim Hildebrandt




















7 - Edward Robert Hughes

'Midsummer Eve'





















8 - Victorian Ephemera

I can never get enough of these illustrations done for advertisements, greeting cards and calendars




















9 - Cicely Mary Barker

The Flower Fairies























10 - Garth Williams

The Little House series




















11 - Carl Larsson

'Around the Lamp'










12 - Alex Ross

He illustrates the characters of the DC universe, including Superman.





















You can see where the art director/cinematographer for 'Superman Returns' got their inspirations for this shot.

13 - Frank Miller

Panel from '300' by Dark Horse Comics












Still from Zach Snyder's film '300'

26 comments:

Addicted to crafting said...

That's an awesome TT!!!

Babe King said...

wow- thanks for sharing. :-)

Anonymous said...

Have a great trip to Toronto!! I know how much you love being there, so I'm sure you're excited about going.

#10 is my favorite because the Little House series is my favorite series. I still read them every couple of years -- all 9 of them.

Darla said...

Oh, those are great! I agree with you--it's definitely art. In fact, the illustrations in picture books are often a child's first introduction to art.

Carrie Lofty said...

I can't imagine the Little House series without Williams' illustrations. But as for comics, I would have to add David Mack. Amazing work.

Ann Aguirre said...

Seuss and Miller! I love their work.

MsSnarkyPants said...

Oh I just LOVE the flower fairies! They are absolutely adorable!

Karina said...

These are most definitely art! I love the flower fairies!

Susan Helene Gottfried said...

Have a great trip, Julia! I'll miss you while you're gone. Travel safe and all that. Don't kill the family; you know the drill.

As for the artists, I doubt you could hear my gasp when I recognized the art from the Lion, The Witch... Wow! We have similar editions of books -- I've got the Garth Williams art on my Little House books, too. But seeing TLTWTW art really brought me back in time. I'd totally forgotten about it.

Akelamalu said...

They are all fabulous but I particularly love 'midsummer eve' and 'the flower fairies'.

Sparky Duck said...

I used to hate Dore. Then I grew up and got a brain. Hughes is always beautiful

Julia Phillips Smith said...

Carrie, thanks for the tip - I just had a look at David Mack's stuff, which I hadn't seen before. Which is saying something, because my husband loves graphic novels and Japanese Samurai stories.

Anonymous said...

These are great. I've always liked Dr. Suess. I also like the victorian ones. I have some great Christmas cards from this era.

Julia Phillips Smith said...

Shelley - I think Victorian Ephemera Christmas images may get their own TT in the not too distant future!

Moondancer said...

What beautiful art. Thanks for posting this. What a treat.

http://moondancerdrake.livejournal.com

Anonymous said...

Lovely!

Of that list, Gorey is my fave!

Amy Ruttan said...

There's also the illustrator who illustrates for Munch. He's good as well as Phoebe Gillman.

See you Saturday!!

Dale said...

Bring warm clothes! Or warm weather!

Anonymous said...

I just read Cat in the Hat to my kids tonight before bed. And wow,
Victorian postcards are delightful (not to mention the Victorian architecture I drank in while in San Francisco this past week). As always, your TT's are delightful, Julia. You are my artistic breath of fresh air.
Blessings,
~Toni~

Anonymous said...

Dr. Suess being my fave, of course!

Robin said...

I love Dr. Seuss. I bought my husband a book of his "grownup" work a while ago. Great stuff.

Unknown said...

Great selection Julia. Have a great time in Toronto.

Unknown said...

Frank Miller rocks!! Great TT Julia. Have a great time in TO!

samulli said...

There are some stunning pictures here. I don't know much about illustrators, but some of these are worth a second look. From your list the only names I know are Frank Miller and Alex Ross. They are fantastic.
Thanks for stopping by my TT as well. ;)

Camille Alexa said...

Amazing stuff! And you've got three of my favouties in there: Gorey, Suess, and Beardsley. All you're missing from my personal list would be Maxfield Parrish.

Camille Alexa said...

Oh, and Odilon Redon.