Hand signed by Al Hirschfeld himself. This subject is pencil numbered from an edition of 300.Published on arches paper. Papermeasures 26.5" x19.5".
In mint condition. Comes unframed. Comes with a gallery certificate of authenticity.
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Albert Hirschfeld (June 21, 1903 – January 20, 2003) was a JewishAmerican caricaturist best known for his simple black and whitesatirical portraits of celebrities and Broadway stars.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri he moved with his family to New York Citywhere he received his art training at the Art Students League of NewYork. In 1924 he traveled to Paris and London, where he studiedpainting, drawing and sculpture. When he returned to the United Statesa friend showed one of his drawings to an editor at the New York HeraldTribune, which got him commissions for that newspaper and The New YorkTimes.
Hirschfelds art style is unique, and he is considered to be one of themost important figures in contemporary caricature, having influencedcountless cartoonists. Hirschfelds caricatures are almost alwaysdrawings of pure line with simple black ink on white paper with littleto no shading or crosshatching. His drawings always manage to capture alikeness using the minimum number of lines. Though his caricaturesoften exaggerate and distort the faces of his subjects he is oftendescribed as being a fundamentally "nicer" caricaturist than many ofhis contemporaries, and being drawn by Hirschfeld was considered anhonor more than an insult. Nonetheless he did face some complaints fromhis editors over the years; in a late-1990s interview with The ComicsJournal Hirschfeld recounted how one editor told him his drawings ofBroadways "beautiful people" looked like "a bunch of animals".Hirschfeld generally dismissed these complaints, and most observerswould agree that time proved him right.
He was commissioned by CBS to illustrate a preview magazine featuringthe networks new TV programming in fall 1963. One of the programs wasCandid Camera, and Hirschfelds caricature of the shows host AllenFunt outraged Funt so much he threatened to leave the network if themagazine were issued. Hirschfeld prepared a slightly differentlikeness, perhaps more flattering, but he and the network pointed outto Funt that the artwork prepared for newspapers and some other printmedia had been long in preparation and it was too late to withdraw it.Funt relented but insisted that what could be changed would have to be.Newsweek ran a squib on the controversy.
Hirschfeld is known for hiding the name of his daughter, Nina, in mostof the drawings he produced since her birth in 1945. The name wouldappear in a sleeve, in a hairdo, or somewhere in the background.Sometimes "Nina" would show up more than once and Hirschfeld wouldhelpfully add a number next to his signature, to let people know howmany times her name would appear. Hirschfeld originally intended theNina gag to be a one-time gimmick but it soon spiraled out of control.Though Nina was a popular feature in his illustrations, with manyenjoying the game of searching for them, on more than one occasionHirschfeld would lament that the gimmick had overshadowed his art. Onoccasion he did try to discontinue the practice, but such attemptsalways generated harsh criticism. Nina herself was reportedly somewhatambivalent about all the attention. In the previously mentionedinterview with The Comics Journal Hirschfeld confirmed the urban legendthat the US Army had used his cartoons to train bomber pilots with thesoldiers trying to spot the NINAs much as they would spot theirtargets. Hirschfeld told the magazine he found the idea repulsive,saying that he felt his cartoons were being used to help kill people.In his 1966 anthology The World of Hirschfeld he included a drawing ofNina which he titled "Ninas Revenge." That drawing contained no Ninas.There were, however, two Als and two Dollys ("The names of her waywardparents").
Hirschfeld collaborated with humorist S. J. Perelman on severalprojects, including Westward Ha! Or, Around the World in 80 Clichés, asatirical look at the duos travels on assignment for Holiday magazine.In 1991 the United States Postal Service commissioned Hirschfeld todraw a series of postage stamps commemorating famous Americancomedians. The collection included drawings of Stan Laurel, OliverHardy, Edgar Bergen (with Charlie McCarthy), Jack Benny, Fanny Brice,Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. He followed that with a collection ofsilent film stars including Rudolph Valentino, ZaSu Pitts and BusterKeaton. The Postal Service allowed him to include Ninas name in hisdrawings, waiving their own rule forbidding hidden messages in UnitedStates stamp designs.
