The greatest illustrator of the past 50 years passed away this week. Mr. Fuchs is the reason I always wanted to be an illustrator. He was the inspiration. His light, his design, and the beauty he conveyed to the canvas was unchallenged by other illustrators for over 40 years. He blurred the line between fine art and illustration in much the same manner as N.C. Wyeth did earlier in the 20th Century. He'll always be the best, and will be missed.
Fuchs and Tiger Stadium.
Only he could capture the beauty + character of the place.
This image from Sports Illustrated and many more of Fuchs' paintings and artwork can be seen at The Telluride Gallery of Fine Art.
Here is a great article from the Washington Post about his life.
And a couple of blogs that get to the heart of Mr. Fuch's talents + contributions:
Drawn! Today's Inspiration Illustration Art
Questions:
Can illustration be considered fine art? Does the commercial aspect of the work detract from its merit as a work of art? Is there a difference between Fuchs' painting of Tiger Stadium and, say, a painting from Monet's Rouen Cathedral series? How are they similar and different?
Posts
I have seen some of Mr Fuchs work over the years as a comparison to the Wyeth generations, which is a favorite of our family. His illustrations are dreamlike and soft which is a nice emotional place to be!
ReplyDeleteJulia
The visual texture of some of Fuchs pieces is very similar to that of NC Wyeth's paintings. I enjoyed seeing other examples of his work in the Washington Post article. Fuchs seemed to let his style evolve with the times and he explored different techniques and compositions.
ReplyDeleteOf course you are going to feature his Tiger Stadium painting!
I think that illustrations - depending on the subject matter - could definitely be considered fine art!
ReplyDeleteAs someone can't draw at all, I admire the skill it takes for artists to complete their works, regardless of genre. As an example, consider comic strips. The simplicity of Calvin and Hobbes captures a certain emotion for many readers, myself included. While some of the strips were meant only to be humorous, some were diatribes on life and childhood. Mixing that kind of message into a small strip about a boy and a stuffed tiger is definitely a style of fine art, in my opinion....
Can anyone please identify the boat at sunset illustration shown above?
ReplyDelete