The century, August 1895

Louis Rhead made this poster for The Century magazine using crayons and ink. It's fascinating to consider these materials – usually associated with childhood – employed in a commercial project. Looking closely, you can see how the waxiness of the crayons gives the image a textured, almost sculptural quality. The bold outlines, reinforced with ink, add to the graphic punch, necessary for grabbing attention on a newsstand. This directness in method mirrors the immediacy of mass communication itself. Rhead was deeply engaged with the Arts and Crafts movement, which advocated for handcraftsmanship against industrialization. This poster presents an intriguing blend: a handmade aesthetic serving the machinery of consumer culture. The loose, expressive lines celebrate the artist's hand, yet the image's purpose is to sell a lifestyle, a 'summer holiday number,' packaged and ready for consumption. It makes us think about the relationship between artistic expression and the burgeoning world of advertising at the turn of the century.