by
Georgius Agricola or
Georg Bauer (1494–1555), illustrating the mining practice of
fire-setting Historically, the art of illustration is closely linked to the industrial processes of
printing and
publishing.
Early history The illustrations of medieval
codices were known as
illuminations, and were individually hand-drawn and painted. With the invention of the
printing press during the 15th century,
books became more widely distributed, and often illustrated with
woodcuts. Some of the earliest illustrations come from the time of ancient
Egypt (Khemet) often as
hieroglyph. A classic example of illustrations exists from the time of The Tomb of Pharaoh
Seti I, to 1279 BC, who was father of
Ramses II, born 1303 BC. 1600s Japan saw the origination of
Ukiyo-e, an influential illustration style characterised by expressive line, vivid colour and subtle tones, resulting from the ink-brushed
wood block printing technique. Subjects included traditional folk tales, popular figures and everyday life.
Hokusai's
The Great Wave off Kanagawa is a famous image of the time. During the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe, the main reproduction processes for illustration were
engraving and
etching. In 18th Century England, a notable illustrator was
William Blake (1757–1827), who used
relief etching. By the early 19th century, the introduction of
lithography substantially improved reproduction quality.
19th century In Europe, notable figures of the early 19th Century were
John Leech,
George Cruikshank,
Dickens illustrator
Hablot Knight Browne, and, in France,
Honoré Daumier. All contributed to both satirical and "serious" publications. At this time, there was a great demand for
caricature drawings encapsulating social mores, types and classes. The British humorous magazine
Punch (1841–2002) built on the success of Cruikshank's
Comic Almanac (1827–1840) and employed many well-regarded illustrators, including Sir
John Tenniel, the
Dalziel Brothers, and
Georges du Maurier. Although all fine art trained, their reputations were gained primarily as illustrators. Historically, Punch was most influential in the 1840s and 1850s. The magazine was the first to use the term "
cartoon" to describe a humorous illustration and its widespread use led to
John Leech being known as the world's first "
cartoonist". In common with similar magazines such as the Parisian
Le Voleur, Punch realised good illustration sold as well as good text. With publication continuing into the 21st Century, Punch chronicles a gradual shift in popular illustration, from reliance on caricature to sophisticated topical observation.
The "Golden Age" From the early 1800s
newspapers, mass-market
magazines, and illustrated books had become the dominant consumer media in Europe and the New World. By the 19th century, developments in
printing technology freed illustrators to experiment with color and rendering techniques. These developments in printing affected all areas of literature from cookbooks, photography and travel guides, as well as children's books. Also, due to advances in printing, it became more affordable to produce color photographs within books and other materials. By 1900, almost 100 percent of paper was machine-made, and while a person working by hand could produce 60-100lbs of paper per day, mechanization yielded around 1,000lbs per day. Additionally, in the 50-year period between 1846 and 1916, book production increased 400% and the price of books was cut in half. Among the best-known illustrators of that period were
N.C. Wyeth and
Howard Pyle of the
Brandywine School,
James Montgomery Flagg,
Elizabeth Shippen Green,
J. C. Leyendecker,
Violet Oakley,
Maxfield Parrish,
Jessie Willcox Smith, and
John Rea Neill. In
France, in 1905, the Contemporary Book Society commissioned
Paul Jouve to illustrate
Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book. Paul Jouve would devote ten years to the 130 illustrations of this book which remains as one of the masterpieces of bibliophilia. ==See also==