| Biography of Louis John Rhead (1857-1926) |
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Louis John Rhead was a preeminent artist, illustrator, and posterist of the late 19th century and was at the forefront of the Art Nouveau movement in America.
Born in Staffordshire, England, to a family of well known ceramicists, Rhead went to Paris at the age of thirteen to study under Gustave-Rodolphe-Clarence Boulanger. When he returned to his native England several years later, he furthered his studies under Edward Pointer and Alphonse Legros. He emigrated to New York and worked as art director for the publisher D. Appleton after completing his training at London's National Art Training School.
Rhead's career as a posterist began in 1890. His first posters were done in England for Cassell's Magazine, the Weekly Dispatch, and Phitesi boots. Producing more than 100 posters during the 1890s, he met with acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic. He was the only American-based artist to have solo exhibitions of posters in London in 1896 and in Paris at the Salon des Cent in 1897. He appeared in some of America's most prominent publications. Often commissioned for posters to accompany holiday editions, Christmas 1895 saw his designs appear simultaneously in The Century, St. Nicholas, The Bookman, Scribner's, and the New York newspaper the Herald. His American advertising posters included large, one- and two- sheet posters for the New York Sun and the New York Journal as well as designs for the printing firm Louis Prang and Company, Lundborg perfumes, Pearline washing powders, and Packer's soap.
Rhead is often linked professionally to Eugene Grasset whom he knew in Paris. This relationship is described in American Art Posters of the 1890s published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art:
Rhead has been called the American Eugene Grasset. He did emulate the Swiss-French artist and publicly acknowledged an artistic debt. However, this relationship was also one of parallel development. Both artists admired the work of Walter Crane and William Morris, two of the leading artists of the Aesthetic Movement, and, like them, worked in all aspects of design. In contrast to the posters of Lautrec and Cheret, however, Grasset's and Rhead's designs reflect the poster's ability to uplift the morality of the viewer.
Rhead's poster activity declined after 1900 as he devoted his talents increasingly to book illustration. But his legacy as a posterist endures. His posters, like his prints and illustrations, show entrancing use of line and color. Their harmony, imagination, and spirit contribute to Rhead's continuing presence in many respected poster collections. |
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