UK painter, illustrator and designer Lawson Wood found a rather unique niche for himself amid the great turn of the 20th Century illustrators by going ape.
Though he portrayed many other subjects, and even had other comic illustration series with particular themes, notably police officers and prehistoric scenes, it was his comic illustrations of apes and monkeys, rendered as if they were Leyendecker models in all their finery, that made his reputation.
he used his apes in a variety of situations, even painting ape caricatures of Hitler, Stalin and the Japanese Emperor during World War II.
His own character, the aged Gran’pop, appeared several times on the cover of Collier’s and was under consideration for an animated cartoon before war broke out.
ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive has a great selection of Wood covers, click on the in-page images for larger versions.
WOW! Another favorite (undiscovered by me) to add to my list of great illustrators. Thanks, Charley!
I’d love to see his work animated in 3D.
I was blown away when I first saw his illustrations, and I’m still a fan today.