Thursday, June 20, 2013

Vintage Zebra with Art Nouveau Woman Rider

Art Nouveau Zebra

This art nouveau-era beauty certainly has a beautiful zebra steed! The beautiful woman and vintage zebra illustration is by W.T. Benda, a Polish-American illustrator. The sweet Zebra illustration was on the cover of the November 1922 issue of Life Magazine. The art nouveau-inspired woman is wearing long plumes of peacock feathers down her back, in her long flowy hair; the peacock is a theme we see in other Benda illustrations, and is recurring in the Art Nouveau period. The beauty wears a long red dress. A leopard-print scarf flows from her back. The zebra looks surprised and backs up on its two hind legs when it meet a dangerous little Cobra snake. The dark blue background and vivid coloring make this zebra image a stunner.


About the Illustrator

W.T. Benda, the illustrator, was a member of the Society of Illustrators, the Architectural League, and the National Society of Mural Painters in the early 1900s. W.T. Benda did illustrations for books, short stories, advertising copy, and magazine covers for major magazines such as Collier's, McCall's, Ladies' Home Journal, Good Housekeeping, and Life Magazine. Benda was known for his different, exotic illustration, and was sought after for his style.



No comments:

Post a Comment