Kurz and Allison
Encyclopedia
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in Chicago
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
, Austria
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
were also illustrated by the company.
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
's popular cyclorama
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
, Abraham Lincoln
, Ulysses S. Grant
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Image:Battle of Spottsylvania (1).png|Battle of Spottsylvania
File:Lookout mountain.jpg|Battle of Lookout Mountain
Image:Battle of Resaca 1864 c1889.jpg|Battle of Resaca
Image:Battle of Williamsburg.png|Battle of Williamsburg
Image:Battle of Olustee.jpg|Battle of Olustee
Image:Battle of Wilsons Creek.png|Battle of Wilson's Creek
Image:Battle of Fort Sanders.png|Battle of Fort Sanders
Image:Battle of Hampton Roads 3g01752u.jpg|Battle of Hampton Roads
Image: The_Storming_of_Ft_Wagner-lithograph_by_Kurz_and_Allison_1890.jpg|Storming of Fort Wagner
Image:Painting of the Battle of Las Guasimas.JPG|Battle of Las Guasimas
Image:Battle of Quingua.jpg|Battle of Quingua
Image:San Juan Hill by Kurz and Allison.JPG|Battle of San Juan Hill
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Kurz and Allison were a major publisher of chromolithographs in the late 19th century. Based at 267-269 Wabash Avenue in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, they built their reputation on large prints published in the mid-1880s depicting battles of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. This was a period of recollection among veterans, and the company was trying to capitalise of this sentiment. In all, a set of thirty-six battle scenes were published from designs by Louis Kurz (1835–1921), himself a veteran of the war. Kurz, a native of Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, had emigrated to the United States in 1848. While the prints were highly inaccurate and considered naive fantasies like Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives
Currier and Ives was a successful American printmaking firm headed by Nathaniel Currier and James Merritt Ives . Based in New York City from 1834–1907, the prolific firm produced prints from paintings by fine artists as black and white lithographs that were hand colored...
prints, they were still sought after. They did not pretend to mirror the actual events but rather attempted to tap people's patriotic emotions. When the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
broke out in 1898, the company created several large prints of the major battles and of the subsequent campaign of the Philippine-American War
Philippine-American War
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection , was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following...
. Later conflicts such as the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
were also illustrated by the company.
Formation of the firm
Louis Kurz first worked as a lithographer in Milwaukee, together with Henry Sifert. After the Civil War, he was one of the founders of the Chicago Lithographing Company. He worked there until the company was destroyed in the Great Chicago FireGreat Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
of 1871. He then returned to Milwaukee, and started the American Oleograph Company. He moved back to Chicago in 1878, where in 1880 he became a partner in the newly founded firm of Kurz and Allison. Alexander Allison probably provided financial backing.
Civil War print series
In 1884 Kurz and Allison published a single print of the battle of Gettysburg inspired by Paul PhilippoteauxPaul Philippoteaux
Paul Philippoteaux was a French artist. He is best known for a cyclorama of the Battle of Gettysburg.-Life and career:Paul Philippoteaux was born in Paris, the son of the French artist Henri Emmanuel Felix Philippoteaux...
's popular cyclorama
Gettysburg Cyclorama
The Battle of Gettysburg, also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting "Pickett's Charge", the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863...
on the same subject, and probably intended to profit by the popularity of the cyclorama. (The cyclorama was first exhibited in Chicago in 1883, where Kurz then was living.) According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) "The influence of the Gettysburg cyclorama on the Kurz and Alison print is readily recognizable.... The print openly copied vignettes from the painting and in at least one instance perpetuated a historical error..."
In June 1886 Louis Prang
Louis Prang
Louis Prang was an American printer, lithographer and publisher. He is sometimes known as the "father of the American Christmas card".- Youth :...
published a series of prints under the title Prang's War Pictures. (They may well have been available for purchase individually some months earlier.) Shortly thereafter Kurz and Allison reissued their print of the Battle of Gettysburg and designed and issued additional prints in the same format (28 by 22 inches). Three such prints were issued in 1886, three in 1887, seven in 1888, six in 1889, four in 1890, six in 1891, one in 1891, four in 1892, and one in 1893. According to Neely and Holzeer (2000) Kurz and Alison, although inspired by Prang's work, did not imitate his artistic aspirtions. "Kurz and Alison remained true to the popular tradition in lithography embodied in the work of Currier and Ives; Prang was aiming higher." Neely and Holzeer (2000) emphasize Kurz and Allison's "antiphotographic" adherence to the traditions of popular lithography and the artistic styles of Civil War publications, in contrast to Prang's more modern style.
Several of the Kurz and Alison Civil War prints featured Black soldiers, particularly Storming Fort Wagner (1890) and The Fort Pillow Massacre (1893), which was unusual at the time.
Other work
Kurz and Allison also issued a series of "family prints" which showed such Civil War figures as Jefferson DavisJefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, and James A Garfield in domestic settings, surrounded by their families. At least one lithograph entitled "George Washington at Mount Vernon" (1889) is known to exist depicting George Washington, Martha Washington and Martha's two children.
The firm also produced a sizable number of black and white lithographs on religious subjects. These were marketed to localized communities with ethnic identities, often separated from their compatriots, often in the West. Many of the firm's prints were reproduced in New Mexican tinwork.
Later reputation
"Prints depicting the Civil War battles by Kurz and Allison are among the most sought after collectibles of Civil War enthusiasts." according to the Martin Art Gallery, Muhlenberg College. In spite of their lack of historical accuracy, Kurz and Allison prints (or details from them) are still used as book covers and iconic images of the Civil War.Gallery
Image:Battle of Spottsylvania (1).png|Battle of Spottsylvania
File:Lookout mountain.jpg|Battle of Lookout Mountain
Image:Battle of Resaca 1864 c1889.jpg|Battle of Resaca
Image:Battle of Williamsburg.png|Battle of Williamsburg
Image:Battle of Olustee.jpg|Battle of Olustee
Image:Battle of Wilsons Creek.png|Battle of Wilson's Creek
Image:Battle of Fort Sanders.png|Battle of Fort Sanders
Image:Battle of Hampton Roads 3g01752u.jpg|Battle of Hampton Roads
Image: The_Storming_of_Ft_Wagner-lithograph_by_Kurz_and_Allison_1890.jpg|Storming of Fort Wagner
Image:Painting of the Battle of Las Guasimas.JPG|Battle of Las Guasimas
Image:Battle of Quingua.jpg|Battle of Quingua
Image:San Juan Hill by Kurz and Allison.JPG|Battle of San Juan Hill
External links
Further reading
- Battles of the Civil War: the Complete Kurz & Allison Prints, 1861-1865 (ISBN 0848704452)
- Harrington, Peter, and Frederic A. Sharf (1998); "A Splendid Little War". The Spanish-American War, 1898: The Artists' Perspective. London: Greenhill.
- Neely, Mark E, Holzer, Harold, and Boritt, Gabor S.(1987); The Confederate Image: Prints of the Lost Cause The University of North Carolina Press
- Neely, Mark E, and Holzer, Harold (2000); The Union Image: Popular Prints of the Civil War North; The University of North Carolina Press (ISBN 0807825107)
- Arader III, W. Graham Kurz and Allison Civil and Spanish American War chromolithographs (King of Prussia, PA) (OCLC: 226916567)