- John Held, Jr.
John Held Jr. (
January 10 ,1889 –March 2 ,1958 ) was aUnited States illustrator, one of the most famousmagazine illustrators of the 1920s. His cheerful art defined theflapper era so well that many people are familiar with it today.Born in
Salt Lake City , he was a son of Annie (Evans) and John Held. His father was born inGeneva, Switzerland and was adopted byMormon educatorJohn R. Park who brought him to Salt Lake City. His maternal grandfather, James Evans, was an English convert to Mormonism. He always claimed that his only art training came from his father and sculptorMahonri M. Young , a grandson ofBrigham Young .Held illustrated many covers for "Life" prior to its 1936 purchase by
Henry Luce . In addition to his archetypical flapper illustrations, during the same time Held also did cartoons in a 19th centurywoodcut style, in a bit of satiricalnostalgia . His woodcut cartoons and faux maps were frequently in "The New Yorker ",founded by his high school classmateHarold Ross , from 1925 to 1932.His post-1930 works are not as well-known, but he was versatile enough to earn a living through the
Great Depression and beyond. By 1952, the nostalgia market was dominated by 1920s designs, and Held's earlier works enjoyed a revival.He died at 69 of throat cancer.
External links
* [http://www.bpib.com/illustrat/johnheld.html John Held Jr. Biography]
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