Today In History: Lynd Ward Is Born

Lynd Ward (June 16, 1905 - June 18, 1985), was a renowned, highly prolific American artist and early graphic novelist who influenced the literary medium through his original series of wood engravings: God's Man (1929); Madman's Drum (1930); Wild Pilgrimage (1932); Prelude to a Million Years (1933); Song Without Words (1936); Vertigo (1937); and posthumously, Lynd Ward's Last, Unfinished, Wordless Novel (2001). He illustrated over one hundred children's books and curriculum, many of which were collaborations with his wife, May Yong McNeer, a graduate of the School of Journalism at Columbia University. Among the published works for children was The Biggest Bear which received the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1953.

But did you know that Lynd Ward was also a 1926 alumnus of Teachers College, Columbia University (1926) who studied fine arts under Professor Arthur Wesley Dow, and then went on to Leipzig, Germany to study at the National Academy of Graphic Arts and Bookmaking? Leipzig was not only one of the three biggest industrial cities in the former East Germany, but one that was instrumental to the development of printing and considered politically radical. After his return to New York, Ward was inspired to begin expressing his political views through powerful wordless novels. Although he worked mainly with wood, his other mediums included watercolor, oil, brush and ink, lithography, and mezzotint.

The following articles are drawn from Proquest Historical Newspapers, which informs and inspires classroom teaching and learning.

• Love, Murder and Death In a Picture Novel. (1930, May 18). New York Times (1923-) 
• 'Most Beautiful' Books Shown at Columbia U.: 150 Volumes off American, German, English Presses on Display At Library. (1933, Jul 09). New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962) 
• Tinker, E.L.. (1933, Dec 10). Lynd Ward's Rebel Artist: Again a Wordless Novel, Beautifully "Made," Tells the Eternal Tale of Chaos and Revolt. New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962) 
• Beautiful Book By a Naturalist. (1937, Apr 25). The Hartford Courant (1923-) 
• Ward, L. (1940, Mar 10). Woodcut Renaissance: The Oldest and at the Same Time the Most Modern of the Graphic Arts Is Staging a Comeback. New York Times (1923-) 
• Crook, M.S (1951, May 06). Colorful Evangelist. The Hartford Courant (1923-) 
• Buell, E.L. (1952, Nov 23). Bringing Up Bruin: The Biggest Bear by Lynd Ward. New York Times (1923-) 
• Halaszs, P. (1974, Oct 27). Ward Engravings On View: Wide Range of Subjects, Visits to Canada Concern with Landscape. New York Times (1923-) 
• Honored Illustrator Lynd Ward. (1985, Jul 04). Chicago Tribune (1963-1996) 
• Heller, S. (2010, Oct 10). Silent Pictures: A Collection of the Politically Charged 1930s Graphic Novels of the American Wood Engraver and Illustrator Lynd Ward. New York Times (1923-) 

Tips:

• Berona, David A. Imagining Lynd Ward. San Francisco, CA : Freedom Voices, [2015]. CUL Rare Books and Manuscripts.
• Buhle, Paul. “Brother Man: The Art and Life of Lynd Ward.” The Journal of American History 100.3 (2013): 939–941. 
• Friedman, Sara A. “The Legacy of Lynd Ward in Contemporary Artists’ Books.” ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2016.

Images:

• Genesis 32, by Lynd Ward, from the Federico Castellon Memorial Print Collection, Courtesy of Teachers College, Columbia University
• Lynd Ward Au Travail, Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
• Lynd Ward (1930), Self Portrait, Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons