Autographed letter signed by Hirschfeld dated May 21, 1983, on his letterhead with address of 122 East 95th Street, New York N.Y. Mailing envelope addressed in Hirschfeld’s hand included. In the letter he describes his drawing method and materials he used. Hirschfeld was best known for his celebrity and Broadway star caricatures that were widely published and critically acclaimed, with major collections of his works housed at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum of Modern Art, both in New York.
The letter:
Dear Mr.:
I use a crow quill pen with/
Gillott #659 nib – Higgins black ink –/
Whatman or Arches water color board/
Cold pressed and a Venus HB pencil -/
And that’s about it! My drawings/
Are designed in pencil on a 20” by 30”/
Sheet of paper and finished and simplified/
With pen and ink/
Hope this information satisfies/
Your queries altho I have no clue as/
To whether applying water color over/
An ink base may not present some/
Problems of smearing/
Fraternally
Hirschfeld
5/21/83
A well-composed letter from the pen of an American icon.
(413) 320-3701
