LOVELY ORIGINAL ARTWORK BY WILL H. BRADLEY FOR THE ECHO MAGAZINE

BRADLEY, Will H. Original cover design for The Echo magazine. [Chicago]: The Echo, [circa 1895]. Original pencil and watercolor magazine cover design highlighted in gouache on card, signed “Will H. Bradley” at lower left. Artwork measures 5-1/2 by 8 inches; gilt matted and framed, entire piece measures 13 by 16 inches. $15,000.

Beautiful original magazine cover design artwork in watercolor and pencil highlighted in gouache, by noted Art Nouveau artist Will H. Bradley.

A stunning original magazine cover design in delicate monotones by Will H. Bradley (18681962), one of the foremost American Art Nouveau designers of his time, known for his advertising posters and book and magazine illustrations. The Echo, a “humorous and artistic fortnightly” was advertised as “Chicago’s new paper— in which will appear a series of colored frontispieces by Will H. Bradley.” It began publication in May 1895 and ceased in July 1897. “Bradley was well acquainted with the stylistic innovations of his European counterparts. Like many French artists, he borrowed stylistic elements from Japanese prints, working in flat, broad color planes and cropped forms. He appropriated the whiplash curves of the Art Nouveau movement so dominant in Europe at the turn of the century and was influenced by the work of the English illustrator Aubrey Beardsley” (www.willbradley.com). With an original lithograph poster advertisement for “The Echo” based on Bradley’s drawing, measuring 21-1/2 x 14-1/2 inches.

A superb example of Bradley’s artistry, handsomely framed.