Vogue (est. 1940)
by Laurence Fellows (1885-1964)
18.5 x 11.5 in., ink on board
Coppola Collection

Formally trained at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art. Subsequently, Fellows developed his technique in England and specifically in France, where he worked under J.P. Laurens at the Academie Julien.

Upon his return to the US in 1910, Fellows became known for his Vogue-influenced drawing style that focused on shapes as a whole rather than on details. The thin outline and flat tonality were key features of his style at the time, which helped him land jobs with several satirical magazines.

In the 1930’s, Fellows realigned his focus away from this simplistic ad style to more detailed fashion illustrations. As such, he worked for magazine such as Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, The American Magazine, and most importantly with Apparel Arts and Esquire magazine, which debuted in 1931 and 1933, respectively. Due to limited supply of male fashion artists, you could find at least one full page illustration by Laurence Fellows in almost every issue. Today, Fellows is most well-known for the drawings from this decade, although he continued to work for Apparel Arts through the 1940’s.