Joseph Christian Leyendecker (American, 1874-1951). New Year's Baby, The Saturday Evening Post cover, Ja...

Description

Joseph Christian Leyendecker (American, 1874-1951)
New Year's Baby, The Saturday Evening Post cover, January 3, 1920
Oil on canvas
28 x 21 inches (71.1 x 53.3 cm)
Signed lower left: JCLeyendecker

PROVENANCE:
The artist's family;
William Mullin, New York, acquired from the above, after 1951;
Private collection, by descent from the above;
Sotheby's, New York, November 21, 2016, lot 11;
Private collection, Dallas, acquired from the above.

LITERATURE:
The Saturday Evening Post, January 3, 1920, cover, illustrated;
M. Schau, J.C. Leyendecker, New York, 1974, p. 186, illustrated;
J. Cohn, Covers of "The Saturday Evening Post:" Seventy Years of Outstanding Illustration from America's Favorite Magazine, New York, 1995, p. 98, illustrated;
L.S. Cutler, J.G. Cutler, J.C. Leyendecker: American Imagist, New York, 2008, p. 133, illustrated.

Few artists captured the evolving spirit of early twentieth-century America as masterfully and as elegantly as Joseph Christian Leyendecker. A virtuoso draftsman and sophisticated designer, Leyendecker was a preeminent figure of the Golden Age of Illustration, his crisp forms and refined compositions defining the look and tone of an era. Across more than three hundred covers for The Saturday Evening Post, he transformed visual storytelling into a language both modern and universal, shaping public ideals of style, humor, and sentiment within a single, instantly legible image.

Among the artist's most enduring contributions to American illustration is his iconic New Year's Baby, a motif introduced in 1906 and revisited annually through the decades that followed. In New Year's Baby, 1920, a coy cherub dressed in a safety-pinned diaper and an oversized, lustrous top hat gazes directly at the viewer, pressing two fingers to his lips. Concealing a bottle of liquor behind his back, the figure serves as an unmistakable reference to the Eighteenth Amendment, ratified in January 1919 and set to take effect exactly one year later, ushering in the era of Prohibition. Thus, New Year's Eve of 1920 marked, for many Americans, the final occasion on which they could lawfully celebrate with alcohol for the foreseeable future. The gleaming top hat alludes to the well-known character "Mr. Dry," while the wooden camel pull-toy operates as a witty emblem of the long "dry spell" to come, another familiar motif in political cartoons of the era.

Stylistically, the painting exemplifies Leyendecker's hallmark techniques: confident, textural brushwork rendered in distinct cross-hatched strokes. The horizonal black lines and amber circle that frame the composition provide both structure and symbolic resonance, anticipating the geometric clarity and decorative elegance of the emerging of Art Deco aesthetic.

For The Saturday Evening Post audience of 1920, this baby stood as a humorous yet poignant emblem of renewal. Emerging from the devastation of the Great War, Americans were eager for levity and symbols of innocence untainted by the world's weariness. New Year's Baby, 1920 stands as one of Leyendecker's most charming and sophisticated interpretations of his beloved motif. Its blend of graphic precision, painterly warmth, and cultural insight encapsulates the very qualities that made him the preeminent illustrator of his generation.


More information about Joseph Christian Leyendecker. See also: Leyendecker, Joseph Christian Artist.

Estimate: $150,000 - $250,000.

*Heritage Auctions strives to provide as much information as possible but encourages in-person inspection by bidders. Statements regarding the condition of objects are only for general guidance and should not be relied upon as complete statements of fact, and do not constitute a representation, warranty or assumption of liability by Heritage. Some condition issues may not be noted in the condition report but are apparent in the provided photos which are considered part of the condition report. Please note that we do not de-frame lots estimated at $1,000 or less and may not be able to provide additional details for lots valued under $500. Heritage does not guarantee the condition of frames and shall not be liable for any damage/scratches to frames, glass/acrylic coverings, original boxes, display accessories, or art that has slipped in frames. All lots are sold "AS IS" under the Terms & Conditions of Auction.