The Monday Tilley Watch takes a glancing look at the art and artists of the latest issue of The New Yorker
The Cartoonists and Cartoons:
Thirteen cartoons, fifteen cartoonists (Harry Bliss has the cover, and Roz Chast has a Sketchbook). One duo, that we know of. One newbie: Ellen Liebenthal, who is the 11th addition to the cartoon colosseum this year and the 176th cartoonist brought in since Emma Allen took the cartoon editor reins in May of 2017. The longest active contributing cartoonist in this issue is Roz Chast, whose first New Yorker drawing appeared in the issue of July 3, 1978.
This week’s cartoons (in a slideshow).
The Cartoon Caption Contest (Ed Himelblau provides the drawing for this week’s contest).
The Rea Irvin Talk Watch:
About 8 years ago the above perfect Talk design by the late great Rea Irvin was replaced, after 92 years, by a contemporary illustrator’s redrawn version. The Spill continues to hope — in this 100th New Yorker anniversary year more than any other! — that Mr. Irvin’s work returns. Read more here.
Rea Irvin’s A-Z Entry:
Rea Irvin (pictured above. Self portrait above from Meet the Artist) Born, San Francisco, 1881; died in the Virgin Islands,1972. Irvin was the cover artist for the New Yorker’s first issue, February 21, 1925. He was the magazine’s first art and only art supervisor (some refer to him as its first art editor) holding the position from 1925 until 1939 when James Geraghty assumed the title of art editor. Irvin then became art director and remained in that position until William Shawn officially succeeded Harold Ross in early 1952. Irvin’s last original work for the magazine was the magazine’s cover of July 12, 1958. The February 21, 1925 Eustace Tilley cover had been reproduced every year on the magazine’s anniversary until 1994, when R. Crumb’s Tilley-inspired cover appeared. Tilley has since reappeared, with other artists substituting from time-to-time. Number of New Yorker covers (not including the repeat appearances of the first cover every anniversary up to 1991): 179. Number of cartoons contributed: 261.