William Cotton Art
William Cotton was born in Stockton, New Jersey and his birth date has been given as both 1880 and 1885, but likely is 1880 because that is what he listed in his entries in Who's Who in American Art of 1947 and 1953. Cotton painted portraits, wrote two Broadway plays and in his day was one of the best-known caricaturists in the country. He studied at the Cowles Art School in Boston and the Académie Julian in Paris. A portrait painter, he founded the National Association of Portrait Painters. Cotton exhibited at the National Academy of Design in New York, the Corcoran Art Gallery in Washington, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the St. Louis Art Museum and The Carnegie Institute. Cotton was among several American artists invited by the French Government to exhibit at the Luxembourg Museum. He worked for Vanity Fair from 1931–36 as an illustrator. Eleanor Roosevelt called his drawing of her for Vanity Fair. From 1932 on, he was one of the illustrators of the department of the New Yorker magazine. His covers and illustrations, especially for early years at the New Yorker, contributed to the definition of that era. Cotton also painted mural decorations for New York City theaters such as the Capitol, Apollo, Times Square and Selwyn theaters. As a playwright he wrote Andrew Takes A Wife and in 1931, The Bride the Sun Shines On which starred Henry Hull and Dorothy Gish on Broadway. A painter, illustrator and cartoonist, Cotton depicted portraits and figures and did magazine illustrations including for The New Yorker. He was also a muralist and cartoonist and his murals are in theatres in New York City as well as in the Hotel Gibson in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Easton's Beach in Newport, Rhode Island. Exhibition venues included the National Academy of Design, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Pennsylvania Academy and the Corcoran Gallery.
Early 20th Century Impressionist William Cotton Art
Pastel
1930s American Modern William Cotton Art
Illustration Board, Pastel
20th Century Contemporary William Cotton Art
Ink, Pastel
1960s American Modern William Cotton Art
Oil Pastel, Watercolor, Archival Paper
Mid-20th Century American Modern William Cotton Art
Oil Pastel, Paper, Gouache
1980s American Impressionist William Cotton Art
Pastel, Paper
1930s American Modern William Cotton Art
Crayon, Paper
1970s American Modern William Cotton Art
Pastel, Archival Paper
Early 2000s Realist William Cotton Art
Chalk, Pastel, Cardboard, Pencil
1940s American Modern William Cotton Art
Paper, Crayon
1930s American Modern William Cotton Art
India Ink, Watercolor, Illustration Board
1950s American Modern William Cotton Art
Graphite, Crayon, Paper, Pencil
Early 20th Century Impressionist William Cotton Art
Pastel
Late 20th Century American Impressionist William Cotton Art
Paper, Pastel, Color Pencil