“Charles Wirgman (1835-1891) was one of those engaging, eccentric, polyglot personalities,” writes John Clark, “who adventured around the Far East in the second half of the nineteenth century. Many deserved their reputation as semi-criminals out for quick money, but Wirgman, though probably never rich, has nowhere left an image of such avariciousness.”

As a correspondent of the Illustrated London News, Wirgman traveled first to Malta, followed by the Philippines, China, and finally Japan in 1861. Within a year of his arrival in Yokohama, Wirgman was publishing his own magazine, which he called The Japan Punch. The irregular journal ran for 25 years, drawn exclusively by Wirgman. Printed on extremely thin, handmade paper, each issue was produced in an edition of approximately 200 copies, according to Hans Harder and Barbara Mittler, Asian Punches: A Transcultural Affair (2013).

The Graphic Arts Collection recently acquired 13 of these rare issues, 5 from late 1865 and 8 from 1866. The Japan Punch joins the work of Okamoto Ippei, and other satirical artists of Japan held in the Princeton University Library.

From 1877 to 1918, Puck magazine was one of the leading sources of American political satire. A beautifully printed history of the magazine has just been published and will soon be on Princeton’s shelves: Michael Alexander Kahn and Richard Samuel West, What Fools These Mortals Be!: The Story of Puck: America’s First and Most Influential Magazine of Color Political Cartoons (IDW Publishing, 2014)

The expert lithographic printing of Puck’s color illustrations was perfected by Jacob Ottmann, along with his partners Vincent Mayer and August Merkel, from their small offices at 21-25 Warren Street. The success of the magazine led Ottman to join with Joseph Keppler and Adolph Schwarzmann, the publishers of Puck, to commission a new building on the corner of Lafayette and Houston Street.

Within a year, the Puck Building, as it became known, housed one of the largest lithographic publishing firms in the United States. Besides Puck, Ottmann printed enormous circus and theater posters, along with color illustrated books and trade cards. One of their most notable artists was William Sommer, whose work has been featured here in an earlier post.

Today, the landmark building houses the outdoor clothing and camping equipment store REI. In renovating the space, the company did a beautiful job in retaining elements of the Ottmann company, including much of the original wood and brick building material. Don’t missing the wall on the first floor where the original lithographic limestones are mounted.

Michael Alexander Kahn and Richard Samuel West, What Fools These Mortals Be!:
The Story of Puck: America’s First and Most Influential Magazine of Color Political Cartoons (San Diego, C.A. : IDW Publishing, 2014)

Oliphant Down (1885-1917), Bal Masqué: a Fantasy in One Act (London: Gowan and Gray, 1924). Book jacket design by E.A. Taylor. Graphic Arts Collection 2014- in process

The Scottish artist Ernest Archibald Taylor (1874–1951) not only painted in oil and watercolor but also designed furniture, interiors, and stained glass. He trained at the Glasgow School of Art before taking a position with the design firm of Wylie and Lochhead.

Beginning in 1910, Taylor and his wife, Jessie M. King (1875-1949) spent several years living in Paris, where they ran an art school called the Shearling Atelier. Back in Scotland, they continued to teach, establishing a school at High Corie on the isle of Arran and an artists’ colony in Kirkcudbright.

Taylor’s experience as a stain glass designer is evident in the cover design for the Scottish playwright Oliphant Down’s posthumous publication Bal Masqué. The Graphic Arts Collection recently acquired all of his preliminary drawings leading up to and including the final book. Notice the changes in the figure,  in the background, in the typography, and in the color scheme.

Princeton also holds ten books designed by Jessie King, primarily children’s books in the Cotsen Library.