Vladimir Bobri

Today's post showcases works by the painter, illustrator, and poster artist Vladimir Bobritsky
(or Bobri, as he came to be known). Born in a wealthy family in Kharkov, Ukraine, in 1898,
 he studied at the Imperial Art School until the Russian Revolution began. During the ensuing
 civil war, Bobritsky fought on various sides before managing to escape to Turkey in 1917
 using a handmade Polish passport skillfully forged by himself. For a few years he wandered
in different areas of Greece and Turkey, while supporting himself with a variety of jobs
such as painting icons and signs, designing theater sets and movie posters,and playing the piano.

Bobritsky kept records of all his travels by constantly sketching his surroundings, and in 1921

 earned his passage to the US by designing sets and costumes for a Russian ballet in Istanbul.

Ads for Koret handbags, 1940

After arriving in New York Bobritsky held various jobs including art director at Saks Fifth Avenue, 

and soon found himself with enough clients to embark on a freelance illustrator career.
By the 1930s Bobri, as he had begun to sign his name, was a leading illustrator working in
 fashion, magazines and advertising. His accounts included Hanes, Koret and Avon; he frequently
 contributed to Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, McCall's and designed seven covers for The New Yorker.

 A Kiss Is Round by Blossom Budney, 1954

 In the 40's and 50's Bobry began to also produce llustrations for children's books, 
some of which have since become classics. His style was simple, elegant and bold. 

Let's Talk About Right and Wrong by Dorothy K. Kripke, 1955

 Sleepy Book by Charlotte Zolotow, 1958

The Whiskers of Ho Ho by William Littlefield, 1958

Icebergs by Roma Gans, 1964

Early 1960s ads for Hanes seamless stockings

Illustrations for The Guitar Review

As a young man Bobri had learned from gypsies to play the guitar, and this passion continued
all his life. In 1936 he was among the founders of The New York Society of the Classic Guitar,
and served as editor or art director of its publication The Guitar Review until 1985.
Other notable visual artists in the group were Gregory d'Alessio, George Giusti
and Antonio Petruccelli. Vladimir Bobri lost his life in a house fire in 1986
that also sadly destroyed most of his works.

Wanderlust

Ann Wood

Delphine Jacquot

Maurice Sendak, Higgelty Piggelty Pop, 1967

Felting dreams

Joanna Concejo

Kozo Kakimoto, Helpful Mr. Bear

sorry, couldn't find the source... help welcome!

Jan Marcin Szancer, Tygrys w pociągu, 1964

Paolo Domeniconi

Eric Beddows, Zoom away, 1982

Camilla Engman, Reisen

Franco Matticchio

Chuck Groenink

Jenny Barnett

Diana Lapshina

WIlliam Steig, Dominic

Francheska Yarbusova, Hedgehog in the fog

Lucie Mullerova

Il giornalino della Domenica

cover by Della Valle, 1906

Il giornalino della Domenica was the most beautiful and innovative children's periodical
published in Italy at the beginning of the 20th century. It was founded in Florence 
by Luigi Bertelli (1858-1920), a journalist and children's book author better known as Vamba.
The most notable of Vamba's children's books is the humorous Il giornalino di Gian Burrasca, 
which was first published in installments in Il giornalino della Domenica and is still in print.
(like many Italian children of the '60s, I both read the book and watched the tv series derived from it
 in which the leading role, a rebellious little boy, was played by the female pop star Rita Pavone).

cover by Baby (Roberto Bracco), 1906

cover by Umberto Brunelleschi, 1907

cover by R. Bernardi, 1908

two covers by Antonio Rubino, 1908

The contents of Il giornalino della Domenica were characterized by a strong pedagogical intent and
 markedly patriotic tone. At the time Italy had been unified for less than 50 years, and the magazine 

 carried on the Risorgimento purpose to "make Italians" by promoting a common language and cultural values. 

The contributors were among the most prominent Italian writers of the period, including Luigi Capuana, 

Edmondo De Amicis, Giovanni Pascoli, Grazia Deledda, Emilio Salgari, Matilde Serao, Sem Benelli, 

F.T. Marinetti, Scipio Slataper, Roberto Bracco Ada Negri, and Luigi Pirandello. 

three covers by Ottorino Andreini, 1909-10

Il giornalino's first issue came out June 24, 1906. Due to economical difficulties, its publication

 was interrupted between 1911 and 1913, then continued, with a series of ups and downs, until 1927.

From the beginning the magazine adopted an avant-garde style, and was characterized by the quality

 of its illustrations, created by some of the leading artists of the time. Antonio Rubino, Filiberto Scarpelli,

 Umberto Brunelleschi, Ugo Finozzi, Marcello Dudovich, Mario Pompei, Sergio Tofano, Ezio Anichini, Lorenzo Viani 

and many others, for a total of over 150 artists, were featured in Il giornalino during its sixteen years' run. 

cover by Filiberto Scarpelli, 1909

two covers by Giuseppe Biasi, 1907-10

Il giornalino was aesthetically remarkable for many reasons, including its avant-garde style, 

its pioneering use of photographs and color offset printing, the attractive clarity of its layouts, 

and the quality of its paper. Such attention to high graphic standards was rare in children's publishing,

 and makes it still one of the most beautiful children's periodicals ever published in Italy.

cover by Argo, 1919

cover by N. Borifina, 1919

The cover illustrations were modern, ironic and elegant, and closely reflected the artistic trends
 of the time, from the initial Art Nouveau influence to the Art Deco style of the 1920s.
A series of competitions organized by the magazine for its covers ushered in a season of exhibitions
 of the illustrations in various events, including the Biennale of Decorative Arts in Monza in 1923.
The competitions were part of the magazine's efforts in discovering and supporting new talents,
and many who began at Il giornalino went on on to become important illustrators and commercial artists.

cover by Alberto Alberti, 1920

cover by Armando Bandinelli, 1920

cover by Sto (Sergio Tofano), 1921

For this first selection of covers I have chosen a rather frequent subject, little girls
interacting with various domesticated animals and pets. More galleries will follow.