Louis M. Glackens

Louis Glackens, William's talented older brother whose prolific career as an illustrator and pioneering cartoon animator has been overlooked until now.

>The artist was prolific in creating his satirical scenes, steeped in wit, combining his 'childlike' fantasies with a heavy dose of jaded cynicism. Following his tenure at Puck, Glackens became one of the first cartoon animators within the burgeoning film industry of the 1910s, creating characters for production houses such as Bray, Pathé and Sullivan Studios. His fantastical depictions of mermaids, anthropomorphic beasts and pie-faced grown-ups carved a path for what would become the wonderful world of Walt Disney. Regrettably, Louis Glackens was out of step with the fashion of his time and bore the curse of the avant-garde. As such, his vast contribution to the history of cartoons has remained largely unexplored. This monograph seizes the opportunity to reevaluate Louis Glackens' cultural contributions through the gift of hindsight and wealth of illustrations generously gifted to the Museum by The Sansom Foundation, Inc.