Category Archives: Illustrators

Remarks and info about artists

Recerca en Curs Sobre l’Il·lustrador amb la Signatura ‘Pol‘

Mina Divina‘ tango by Juan Viladomat & Juan Misterio. Published in Barcelona (s.d.) by Musical Emporium. Cover illustration signed ‘Pol’.

Our post today is a cry for help. Its title is written in Catalan, which translated, means: ‘Research in progress on the illustrator known as Pol‘. Maybe someone —possibly in Barcelona— can help us identify this very fine illustrator from the Art Deco period.

If Divina doesn’t convince you of Pol’s artistic qualities, perhaps Julieta will.

Julieta‘ another tango by Juan Viladomat. Spanish lyrics by V. Salvatella & Lorca, published by Unión Musical Española (Barcelona, s.d.). Cover illustration by ‘Pol’.

Or can Cléo persuade you?

Cléo‘ Fox-trot composed by J. Demon, published by Musical Emporium (Barcelona, s.d.). Cover design by ‘Pol’.

Our sheet music collection holds all but thirty covers signed with the 3-letter-monogram Pol. Are the three letters the initials of a Spanish/Catalan artist? Or do they simply spell his or her name? A quick survey proves that Pol is not only a popular Catalan first name (like let’s say Paul) but also a common surname.

Four different signatures of the illustrator ‘Pol’.

After unsuccessfully trying to identify the artist for years, thís cover recently gave me a possible clue:

Plumita al Viento‘, a tango composed by Juan Camarasa with lyrics by Pedro Pol, published Madrid by Union Musical Espanola (s.d.), illustration signed ‘Pol’.

The lyrics of the song Plumita al Viento were written by Pedro Pol, and the cover is illustrated by Pol. Could it be the same person? Looking on the net, I found covers of three other songs written by Pedro Pol. And two of these are illustrated by Pol. So our investigation brought us this far, not without feeling an inkling or presentiment of perhaps beginning to solve the year-long puzzle…

Now, inspecting our Pol sheet music, I stumbled upon another cover which could perhaps offer the key to completely unlock our little mystery:

Soc mig Parisenca‘ by P. Moltó & J. M. Plá, with Catalan lyrics by Juan Misterio. Published by Ildefonso Alier (Madrid, s.d.). Illustration signed P. Pol

With this amusing cover (look how well Mercedes Serós is caricatured from the picture insert) our hunch is doubly confirmed, as our illustrator here signed with ‘P. Pol‘. If the P. stands for Pedro, then perhaps our graphical artist has identified himself to be the lyricist Pedro Pol.

From our collection we know that other lyricists doubled as illustrators of sheet music covers. Poet and type designer Georges Auriol springs to mind, but there are others: Jean Tranchant, Nisa and Gene Buck to name but a few.

So our current hypothesis is that Pol is the signature of a gifted person named Pedro Pol, who wrote a few songs and colourfully illustrated many Spanish and Catalan sheet music covers. Possibly, our artist lived and worked in Barcelona during the roaring twenties… Our investigation is stuck, so it is time to put the current state of our research on the net, and call for help:

Ens ajudes a identificar qui va ser el lletrista Pedro Pol, actiu a Barcelona durant els anys vint i potser també il·lustrador de moltes versions de cançons signant el seu bonic treball amb ‘POL‘? Si us plau?

Can you help us to identify who was the lyricist Pedro Pol, active in Barcelona during the twenties and perhaps also the illustrator of many song covers signing his beautiful work with ‘Pol‘? Please?

Pide!‘ by E. Burrull & Ramuncho, published by Ildefonso Alier (Madrid, s.d.), illustrated by (Pedro?) Pol

Browse for Gondola Prows

‘Belle Italie’ by Ludo Langlois and L. Frings, published by L’Art Belge (Bruxelles, 1928) and illustrated by Peter De Greef.

Without the post from Olivier Castel we would never have paid attention to the shape of the gondola prow. Browsing our collection for gondolas —while keeping a sharp eye out for the fero da provathe image created by Peter De Greef for ‘Belle Italiecaught our attention. A small covered cabin, the felze, offers privacy to a smooching couple. Although stylised, the representation of the iron bow is like it should be. De Greef clearly passes the bow test.

‘A kiss in the dark’ by Victor Herbert published by Salabert (Paris, 1922) and illustrated by Roger De Valerio.

From the creative energy of another giant of illustration, Roger de Valerio, emerged a similar powerful image of luxurious intimacy under a cloak of Venetian darkness. De Valerio probably didn’t care about the exact morphology of the iron bow: three teeth are missing.

In my Gondola‘ by Harry Warren & Dud Green. Left: published by Shapiro, Bernstein, & Co. (New York, 1926). Right: published by Salabert (Paris, 1927) and illustrated by de Valerio.

For the song ‘In my Gondola’ the original American cover shows a comic-like and anecdotal scene in a stereotypical Venice. In de Valerio’s modernistic version on the other hand the calm composition and the rhythm of the repetitive boats make a check of their mandatory curves and number of teeth irrelevant.

Photographs of ‘ferri di prova’ with four and five teeth. Ca 1900. Source: Wikipedia.

Besides, photographs from around 1900 show us gondolas with four or five teeth, so we can’t really blame de Valerio for not drawing the usual six.

‘Scheint der mond auf Venedig’ by Max Geiger, published by Wiener Bohème – Verlag (Wien, 1930) and Illustrated by Otto Dely.

Venezia, Venise, Venedig, where the full moon ever watches courtship. Otto Dely, another colossus in illustration land, depicts this romantic idyll for ‘Scheint der Mond auf Venedig‘…, with an almost perfect bow!

Some illustrators though were wide of the mark when trying to render a Venetian gondola. Next follows our short compilation of these faux pas.

Olivier Castel rightly insisted on the distortion of the bows drawn by Leon Pousthomis. We found another example in our collection, where the stern of the gondola much resembles the Loch Ness Monster emerging from the Venetian laguna.

Sobre las olas‘ by Juventino Rosas, published by Galeries Parisiennes de Musique (Paris, s.d.). Cover illustration by Leon Pousthomis.

One should think Italians did know how to draw a gondola, or didn’t they? Oops, the fero on the prow is twisted inwards!

‘Notturnino Veneziano’ by G. Lagorio, published by Fratelli Franchi (Rome, 1927) and illustrated by Monni (illegible).

The unknown Spanish illustrator of ‘Morir de Amor‘ moved the ornamental fero from the bow to the stern of the boat, added a practical hole in it, and drew only two teeth. A fiasco, though good points for colourfulness and romance.

‘Morir de Amor’ by Ch. Schumann, published by Ch. Schumann (1920).

La Barcarolle‘ scores okay for the full moon, but stern and bow of the gondola are the same: zero points.

‘La Barcarolle’ by Emile Waldteufel, published by Hopwood & Crew (London, s.d.).

And if you can’t make head nor tail of the Venetian gondola, then simply drop the prova. No need for realism to draw a striking image, isn’t it Paul Telemann?

Left: ‘Gondolieren’ by Jose Armandola, published by Edition Accord (Berlin, 1922). Right: ‘Barbitonia’ by Max Rhode, published by Otto Wrede (Berlin,1920) both illustrated by Paul Telemann.

At last, a dishonourable mention goes to illustrator Capitan for his drawing of a pitiful gondola bow for Je connais ton pays. The full moon is not at the romantic rendezvous, but we imagine the ultimate Venetian stereotype of the boy passionately singing O sole mio, as it is often offered to tourists enjoying a gondola ride in Venice though it is a Neapolitan song. In the eighties tourist officials even ordered gondoliers to stop crooning O sole mio because it is not Venetian. Naples reacted by sending a group of strolling musicians to Venice to make sure tourists had their fair share of Neapolitan melodies.

Illustrated cover of the sheet music 'Je connais ton pays'
Je connais ton pays‘, a barcarolle by Albert Petit, Villemer & Delormel, published by Nouveau Répertoire des Concerts de Paris (s.d.) and illustrated by O. Capitan.

It’s now or never, thinks The King.

Il Fero da Prova, Symbol of Venice

Carnaval vénitien’ by Jules Burgmein, published by G. Ricordi & Cie (Milan, 1897). Cover chromolithographed by Giovanni Maria Mataloni.

Olivier Castel is one of our long-time readers. He teaches medicine at the university of Poitiers (France) and has been for many years a passionate collector of books and sheet music about Venice. It pleases us very much to publish his interesting findings on the iconography of gondolas. We hope that our translation does justice to Dr Castel’s fine observations. Happy reading!

The image of Venice is closely associated with its gondolas, slowly and gracefully gliding through the shallow, narrow canals of the lagoon. With their elegant, easily recognisable profile and black colour they have become a key symbol of the city. It is therefore not surprising that they have been a source of inspiration for many artists to illustrate sheet music depicting Venice. The city’s captivating charm has spawned a remarkable number of at least 350 scores with a French title or published in Paris a third of them illustrated with a gondola.

Fero da prova‘ Venice ca. 1700. Source: The Met, New York

Very early in its history, the bow of the gondola was adorned with a characteristic fero da prova. This iron prow head forms a comb with six teeth rising forward. It was originally used to counterbalance the weight of the gondolier. During the XVIIth century, each element acquired a precise meaning: the curvature represents the Grand Canal, the 6 parallel horizontal teeth at the front represent the 6 sestieri or districts of Venice and the only tooth opposite the upper tooth, represents the island of Giudecca. Finally, the empty space formed by the converging of the upper curved figure (called the Doge’s hat) towards the first tooth represents the Rialto Bridge.

French sheet music seldom gives an accurate representation of the gondola’s bow and iron. The Italians knew better of course, as proven by the opening image of ‘Carnaval vénitien‘ published by Ricordi, and richly illustrated by the Italian artist Giovanni Maria Mataloni (1889-1944). Mataloni is best known as a poster artist, and one of the precursors of the Stile Liberty, the Italian variant of Art Nouveau.

Le doux air de Veniseby Auguste Panseron, published by J. Meissonnier (Paris, 1829) and illustrated by Marie-Alexandre Alophe.

Marie-Alexandre Alophe (1812-1883), aka Adolphe Menut, is a painter and a lithographer. His work is characterised by a gentle sensitivity. Although also a photographer, he does not care about an accurate depiction, only the general appearance matters for him in order to evoke Venice. Let’s look at his 1829 drawing for Le Doux Air de Venise, a typical illustration for early 19th century scores. The prow iron is absent, its shape is ‘integrated’ in the wood of the gondola, the proportions are wrong, the front teeth are too thick and there are only three of them with no rear one. The result is a heavy, coarse bow.

La plainte du Gondolier’ by Gaston Salvayre, published by Choudens Père Fils (Paris, 1878) and illustrated by Gustave Fraipont.

The same applies to the cover illustration of ‘La plainte du Gondolier‘ by Gustave Fraipont half a century later. Fraipont (1843-1923), a French illustrator and poster artist of Belgian origin, here at the beginning of his career, gives us an airy stereotypical vision of Venice and its Grand Canal but with a rather unrefined gondola.

La célèbre Furlana vénitienne’ by Saratosga, published by Victoria (Paris, 1914) and illustrated by Paul Dubois.

During the 1914 Furlana dance craze Paul Dubois (1886-1949) illustrated two covers of La Célèbre Furlana Venitienne. The illustrator, identified by the monogram PD, creates one of the most curious representations of the Venetian gondola, with an unrealistic prow-head where the artist didn’t respect the Grand-Canal curvature, nor the number of teeth both at the front and at the rear. He even placed the gondolier opposite his usual place. Besides, knowing that the gondola has an asymmetrical shape, it would be impossible to move it through the water.

Left: ‘Barcarolle’ by Gaston Aubert, published by himself (Paris, 1908). Right: ‘La Giocosa Furlana’ by Lucien Durand, published by C. Dupuis (Paris, 1914). Both covers illustrated by Léon Pousthomis.

Leon Pousthomis (1881-1916) created many sheet music covers during his short life (he died in the Battle of Verdun at the age of 35). The 12 illustrated scores depicting Venice are evidence of his prolificacy. What characterises his vision of Venice perhaps the most is the distortion of the bow of the gondolas which he stretches to the extreme.

Clockwise; ‘Venise la jolie’ byJean Daris , ‘A kiss in the dark’ by Victor Herbert, ‘Lido Lady’ by Rodgers & Hart, ‘Venise adieu!’ by Ackermans & Geuskens and ‘Dans ma gondole’ by Harry Warren. Published by Salabert (Paris, 1922- 1928) and illustrated by de Valerio. The cover of Lido Lady is attributed to de Valerio.

Roger de Valério (1886-1951) created his first cover for the publisher Salabert in 1917, for whom he allegedly produced more than 2000. In 1926 Emile Chéronnet wrote: “I had this collection in my hands. This is a set of such a baffling variety that you can hardly believe it is not made by an entire studio. However Valério works alone indeed, and for these musical illustrations he has an imagination that is nearly miraculous” (L’Art Vivant, October 1926). It is therefore not surprising to find no less than 11 of his covers depicting Venice, including 5 with a gondola.

‘Sérénade à Marysa’ by Pandera, published by Editions Ricordi (Paris, 1935). ‘Lido cha cha’ by Roger Lécussant, published by Publications Musicales Jean Merlin (Paris, 1961). Both illustrated by Würth.

But it is Würth who illustrated the most scores with Venice on the cover: 16 between 1920 and 1961. He gave the gondolas a simple shape with an elongated, stylised bow and a marked Rialto Bridge. He purified his design over the years as we can see on these two sheet music covers made 25 years apart. Würth was an ubiquitous illustrator in French music publishing in the mid-twentieth century. He has worked for a large number of publishing houses (the 16 recorded scores were published by 15 different publishing houses). Despite a plethora of work, nothing is known about his life, which is rather surprising but not unusual in the world of music publishing.

Left: ‘Venise’ by Hubert Giraud, 1957. Right: ‘Chanson de Venise’ by Nicole Louvier, 1961. Both published by Les Nouvelles Editions Méridian (Paris) and illustrated by Raymond Erny.

To conclude this post on the ornamental prow iron we emphasise its importance as an icon for Venice, a simplified version of it being enough to evoke the city. For the 1957 song ‘Venise‘ Raymond Erny replaced a bar of the V by the highly stylised prow of a gondola. He also uses a Palina, another symbol of the city. For the 1961 song Chanson de Venise, he simplifies the prow even more by merely adding three horizontal crossbars to the front of the V. Erny, a contemporary of Würth, also remains to this day almost unknown, despite an equally significant production. Fortunately, we still have their illustrations as reminders of their work.

Olivier Castel

F. Mendelssohn: Venetianisches Gondellied Op. 30 n.6 – played by Roberto Giordano