Edward Penfield

EDWARD PENFIELD (New York, 1866- Beacon, 1925).
"Boat Races," 1906.
Lithograph.
The Stoke-Oar. Ed. P.F. Collier & Son.
A copy of this lithograph is housed at the MET in New York.
It has a tear at the top.
Measurements: 36 x 28 cm.

The aesthetics of this lithograph fully conforms to the ideal of the modern, athletic man, whose image became a symbol of success in the early 20th century.

Edward Penfield was an illustrator and graphic designer considered one of the pioneers of the modern advertising poster in the United States, especially for his work for Harper's Magazine in the late 19th century, where he developed a distinctive style characterized by the use of flat colors, simple compositions and elegant figures influenced by Art Nouveau, contributing decisively to consolidate the poster as an effective means of visual communication and laying the foundations of contemporary commercial graphic design.