John Held, Jr. - Civilization's Progress Illustration - Liberty Magazine - Flapper + Jazz - 1932
Artist: John Held, Jr. (All)
32 Views - 2 Comments - 4 Likes
Additional Images:
Liberty Magazine - Civilization's Progress Tearsheet
Artwork Details
|
DescriptionSometimes you just get lucky in this hobby. I was thrilled to get a wonderful piece from Held's Liberty magazine series, "Civilization's Progress", a few years ago. Now I've been able to pick up a second illustration from the same series. Held drew the feature for Liberty over a two year period, 1931 and 1932. This one appeared in the January 23, 1932 issue of the magazine. As with the other piece, Held drew the feature in two parts. The earlier part of history was represented by one of his linocut-style illustrations drawn on scratch board (thanks to Sara Duke from the LoC for the information), while the contemporary version was done in his full-on Jazz Age Art Deco approach. This feature deals with the waltz of yesteryear versus the Ha-Cha-Cha of today. You can see the published version in the additional images.I'm not sure there is a scan on earth that can do true justice to the fine line and delicate shading of Held's work, but I've done my best here. I love the composition of the piece that starts in the upper left and moves diagonally downward towards the lower right, ending at that sweet, sweet dog. The musicians are fantastic, with the contrast of their outfits setting off the fine-line work. But it is the flapper who truly steals the show of this illustration. Held made figure work look much easier than it was, truly apparent in this piece. At some point in the not-too-distant future, I'll do a blog post about this feature of Held's. As much as I don't care for his linocut work, it does present an interesting foil to his wonderfully stylized Jazz Age work. Social/Sharing |
About the Owner
|
 |
Contact the OwnerUse can use a contact form to send an email to this gallery owner,
|
Comments on this Artwork
You must be logged in to make comments.
Marcus Wai 
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 1/6/2026
That's like some pin point line control there! Maybe it was to show the fading glory of the roaring 20's when times were more lean.
Rarebit Fiend
Member Since 2005
1 - Posted on 1/7/2026
Outstanding! John Held is such a distinctive and unique voice in the concert of American cartoonists!
Latest Updates
All |
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
Auctions ADVERTISEMENT
 |
The Blood Red Bride of Frankenstein Red Paper Horror Comics Sketch |
Auctions
| Nick Cardy - Superman Sketch Original Art (2002) |
Auctions
 |
FRANK FRAZETTA DEATH DEALER IV OIL PAINTING |
Auctions
 |
Howard Chaykin - Star Wars #1, Page 31 |
Hakes Auctions
 |
GHOSTS #82 COMIC BOOK COVER ORIGINAL ART BY LUIS DOMÍNGUEZ. |
Subscribe to the YouTube Channel.. FREE!
Scott's Collectables
1 Accepting Commissions
Commission an Artist
For Sale Updates
Classified Updates |
|
Robert Hughes1/23/2026 7:28:00 PM |
|
Monty B1/23/2026 5:37:00 PM |
|
Mugen R.1/23/2026 4:52:00 PM |
|
ComicLINK.Com Auctions1/23/2026 4:47:00 PM |
|
NELSON H1/23/2026 3:11:00 PM |
|
ENRIQUE ALONSO1/23/2026 2:36:00 PM |
|
Dealer Updates |
|
RomitaMan Original Art1/24/2026 5:27:00 AM |
|
Coollines Artwork1/23/2026 9:53:00 PM |
|
Koch Comic Art1/23/2026 7:20:00 PM |
|
Anthony's Comicbook Art1/23/2026 4:51:00 PM |
|
ComiConArt1/23/2026 3:57:00 PM |
|
Catskill Comics1/23/2026 2:15:00 PM |
|
|
Become a Premium CAF Gallery Owner & you'll be supporting CAF and also gain access to many services and features not available to standard members.
|