Fantasies & Fairytales: Maxfield Parrish & the Art of Print

lantern bearers

Maxfield Parrish, The Lantern Bearers, 1910. Lithograph, 11½" x 8¾" [framed: 12½" x 10"]. Heritage Auctions (HA.com).

Fantasies and Fairy-Tales: Maxfield Parrish and the Art of the Print

April 29-July 11, 2010

Admission: $10 adults; $8 senior citizens (65+), college students (w/ ID), Children 5-18, Military (w/ID); FREE for Everson Members

During the height of Maxfield Parrish's popularity in the 1920s and 1930s, he was the most reproduced American artist of his era. Disseminated through magazine covers, book illustrations, calendar pads, advertisements and color reproductions, Parrish's images occupied a ubiquitous presence in popular visual culture. While recent exhibitions of Parrish have focused mainly on his original oil paintings, Fantasies and Fairy-Tales represents the first comprehensive sampling of Parrish's work in a variety of printed media. His whimsical designs based on fairy-tales and nursery rhymes were a favorite of early twentieth century advertisers as in the series of designs marketing Ferry's Seeds and Swift's Premium Ham.

Isolated from many of his fellow artists due, in part, to his enormous commercial success, Parrish developed an original and individual style that defies categorization. His career represented a challenge to the traditional artistic divide between commercial and fine art. Fantasies and Fairy-Tales testifies to the ability of Parrish to live with a foot in both worlds, simultaneously enjoying the fruits of commercial and critical success while delighting audiences of all ages.

ecstasy

Maxfield Parrish, Ectasy, 1930. Calendar, 38¾" x 18" [39¼" x 18¾"]

 

 

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