Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum

Infobox Artist
bgcolour =
name = Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum


imagesize =
caption = Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum, 1894
birthname = Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum
birthdate = August 28, 1849
location =
deathdate = October 22, 1925 (aged 76)
deathplace =
nationality = American
field = Illustration, Painting, Drawing, Journalism
training =
movement =
spouse =
works =
patrons =
influenced by =
influenced = Frederic Remington
awards =

Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum (August 28, 1849 – October 22, 1925) is primarily known as an illustrator for late 19th century news magazines, but he was also a journalist and author. His works were regularly featured in "Harper’s Weekly Magazine". [ [http://www.askart.com/askart/z/rufus_fairchild_zogbaum/rufus_fairchild_zogbaum.aspx Rufus Zogbaum’s entry on AskArt.com] ]

Career

"Harper's Weekly" normally hired freelance illustrators; nevertheless, for a time Zogbaum was on the magazine's art staff and was sometimes given the assignment to redraw submissions by freelance illustrators. In the 19th century news magazine world, redrawing illustrations was the equivalent of editing writers’ works. Two of the most famous artists who made illustrations for Harper’s were Winslow Homer and Frederic Remington, whose first few illustrations for Harper’s were redrawn by staff artists, including Zogbaum.

By 1912, Remington had died (1909) and Zogbaum became so well-known that no less than Rudyard Kipling included references to him in a poem about a friend who had passed away:

"Admiral [Robley D.] Evans" [ [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdevans.htm Poem by Rudyard Kipling referencing Zogbaum] ]

Zogbaum draws with a pencil, /And I do things with a pen. /And you sit up in a conning tower /Bossing eight hundred men. //

Zogbaum takes care of his business /And I take care of mine. /And you take care of ten thousand tons, /Sky-shooting through the brine. //

Zogbaum can handle his shadows /And I can handle my style. /And you can handle a ten-inch gun /To carry seven mile. //

"To him that hath shall be given." /And that's why these books are sent /To the man who had lived more stories /Than Zogbaum or I could invent.

pecialization and influence

Zogbaum specialized in several areas of illustration. During his lifetime, his drawings and paintings of horses and military themes (U.S. Army and Navy) were almost as well-known as Remington’s, although he was older than Remington and his works had actually influenced the younger artist. [Peggy & Harold Samuels, "Frederic Remington: A Biography", Doubleday & Co., Garden City, NY] As did Remington, during the Spanish-American War, Zogbaum served as an on-the-scene artist-correspondent.

Afterward

His son, Rufus F. Zogbaum, Jr., became an admiral in the U.S. Navy, and his grandson, Wilfred Zogbaum [ [http://americanart.si.edu/search/artist_bio.cfm?StartRow=1&ID=5564 Smithsonian American Art Museum biography of Wilfred Zogbaum] ] (1915-1965), was a well-respected painter and sculptor who had teaching stints in several universities, including the University of California at Berkeley.

Links to illustrations

* [http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/hh/38/hh38t.htm "The March Out", by Rufus Zogbaum (1885), used on the Ft. Davis National Historic Site website]
* [http://www.nevadaobserver.com/Letters%20to%20the%20Editor.htm "The Prairie Mail Box", by Rufus Zogbaum (1887), on the ‘’Nevada Observer’’ website]
* [http://www.legendsofamerica.com/photos-montana/CowboyIllustration.jpg"Montana Cowboy" by Rufus Zogbaum (1885) used to illustrate his article, "A Day's Drive With Montana Cowboys" in Harper's Magazine, July 1885, Volume 71, Issue 422]
* [http://www.mariner.org/women/lifeinport/return2.htm "Sailors Buying Souvenirs", 1892, by Rufus Zogbaum (1897) in "All Hands: Pictures of Life in the United States Navy", 1897, from the The Mariners' Museum Research Library and Archives website]
* [http://www.discoverseaz.com/History/CavalryColumn.html Article by Rufus Zogbaum, "Across Country with a Cavalry Column" (1885), showing four illustrations]

References