ORIGINAL ART: ANOTHER OUTLINE, OR THE STRANGE STORY OF DENNIS THE O'CE by SMITH, E.BOYD

SMITH, E.BOYD. SMITH,E.BOYD. ORIGINAL ART: ANOTHER OUTLINE, OR THE STRANGE STORY OF DENNIS THE O'GEOGHEGAN. Offered here is an original watercolor done by Smith for an unpublished book. Done in the same size and format of his Early Life of Mr. Man, circa 1910. It measures 11 1/2" wide by 9 3/4" high and is matted with the the visible image measuring 10" x 8 1/2". The image is a tongue in cheek look at evolution with a simian (gorilla) portrait side by side with a human portrait whose face shows that we haven't evolved too much from the monkeys. O'Geoghegan is so clearly an Irish name that this could be Smith's insult, hopefully with good humor rather than with malice. Both portraits are embedded in the evolutionary tree. Below this are various prehistoric animals including dinosaurs and a mastodon. Typical of Smith's work but with more of an edge resulting in a piece that is fun to look at. Smith has a prominent place in the history of American picture books. In the Brooklyn Public Library's on-line exhibit they note that with his first 2 picture books "it immediately established him, along side Howard Pyle and Jessie Willcox Smith as one of America's leading illustrators for the young.