Ben Shahn: His Graphic Art, 1957.

The Empty Studio
“The empty studio … No voice is heard now. The music is still. The studio audience has gone home. But the work of the broadcast has just begun … Between broadcasts, people everywhere are buying the things this program has asked them to buy.”

Originally illustrated for a (CBS) network radio advertising sales pamphlet in 1948, Shahn, through his visual acuity, brilliantly captured the starkness of a vacant radio studio. The cold maze of metal folding chairs and music stands, numerous microphones, and a lone cello resting gingerly between two chairs establish the mood voiced in the brochure copy. (–ADC)

[ All images © ]
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Art director Barry Smith has a great line-up of images of his copy of a 1963 printing of Ben Shahn: His Graphic Art on flickr. (The book by James Thrall Soby was originally published in 1957.) I have long been a fan of the linear art of twentieth century master Ben Shahn (1898–1969). His rapid illustrations are wildly expressive and dynamic, sometimes dark and bitter. Mr. Shahn’s work shines in this book in over hundred reproductions including eight pages in full color. Also included is a chronology of the artist’s life and a complete bibliography of the artist’s literature at the time of the printing.

Ben Shahn was born of Jewish descent in Lithuania in 1898 and subsequently immigrated/escaped with his family to the USA in 1906. Although best known for his works of social realism and injustice, Mr. Shahn also was a standout in the advertising and editorial world of magazines such as Scientific American, Fortune, Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue; and created promotional brochures and print ads for CBS teamed with William Golden. “[…] the team of Golden and Shahn helped make CBS flourish. […] From 1947 until Golden’s untimely death in 1959, the ‘dynamic duo’ produced many inspired graphics for CBS.” (–ADC)

Long after his death interest continues in Ben Shahn’s work through exhibitions and collectors. Additionally his work can be viewed via the many Shahn murals and frescoes commissioned for public buildings in the 1930s. These egg-tempera works can be found in post offices in New York City including thirteen murals spanning the walls of the Bronx Central Annex Post Office. Shahn also created work for the Health, Education, and Welfare Building in Washington, DC.

I look forward to featuring more of Ben Shahn’s imagery on AQ-V in the future. I am always on the lookout for his LP album cover designs such as this one.

This post does not scratch the surface of the breadth of Ben Shahn’s lifetime work, nor did I convey Mr. Shahn’s background and exposure to human suffering and prejudice at an early age which served to directly inform his views and art. For more information about the life and work of Ben Shahn:

– Art Directors Club Hall of Fame
– Wikipedia
– Art as Activism: The Compelling Paintings of Ben Shahn (Documentary)

See more >> Ben Shahn • Graphic Design flickr set

[ All images © ]
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Psst… to keep up to date:

• You can grab the
  AQ-V RSS Feed
• And follow
  AQ-V on Twitter
• And/or the
  AQ-V Fan Page

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .