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Barry Blitt

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Name
  
Barry Blitt

Role
  
Artist


Siblings
  
Ricky Blitt

Barry Blitt Cover Story Barry Blitt39s Belly Flop The New Yorker

Born
  
April 30, 1958 (age 65) (
1958-04-30
)
Cote Saint-Luc, Quebec, Canada

Education
  
Ontario College of Art and Design

Similar People
  
Francoise Mouly, Ricky Blitt, Anita Kunz, Roz Chast, Art Spiegelman

Known for
  
Illustration, Cartoonist

Barry blitt and bob staake on the new yorker s cover art the new yorker festival


Barry Blitt (born April 30, 1958 in Côte Saint-Luc, Quebec) is a Canadian-born American artist.

Contents

Barry Blitt Sketchbook The New Yorker

Barry Blitt is a cartoonist and illustrator, best known for his New Yorker covers and as a regular contributor to the op-ed page of the New York Times. Blitt creates his works in traditional pen and ink, as well as watercolors.

Barry Blitt Another brilliant New Yorker cover illustration by Barry

Life with barry blitt


Early life and education

Barry Blitt httpssmediacacheak0pinimgcom236x72264f

Blitt grew up in Côte Saint-Luc, Quebec, a municipality on the Island of Montreal. The artist's first publication credit came at age 16: a series of drawings in the Philadelphia Flyers 1974 yearbook. He graduated from The Ontario College of Art and Design and moved to the US in 1989.

Work

Barry Blitt Barry Blitt ADC Global Awards amp Club

Blitt's illustration work has been featured by publications such as The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic and others.

The artist is also well known for illustrating Frank Rich's Sunday op-ed column in the New York Times. Regarding that work, Rich is quoted as saying, "It's a long-distance collaboration – me in New York City, Barry in Connecticut – but one of the most satisfying I've had in my career."

Barry Blitt Barry Blitt ADC Global Awards amp Club

Many of Blitt's New Yorker covers have been finalists for the Cover of the Year from the American Society of Magazine Editors, including, in 2008, Narrow Stance and I'll Get It!,First Anniversary in 2010, and The Book of Life in 2012.

Barry Blitt The New Yorker Cover May 23 2005 Poster Print by Barry

Blitt is also credited with animation design by Saturday Night Live

Children's Book Illustrator

  • Once Upon a Time, the End (Asleep in 60 Seconds) by Geoffrey Kloske, Simon & Schuster (2005)
  • The 39 Apartments of Ludwig Van Beethoven by Jonah Winter, Schwartz & Wade (2006)
  • What's the Weather Inside? by Karma Wilson, Simon & Schuster (2009)
  • The Adventures of Mark Twain by Huckleberry Finn by Robert Burleigh, Simon & Schuster (2011)
  • George Washington's Birthday (a mostly true tale) by Margaret McNamara, Random House (2012)
  • The Founding Fathers!Those Horse-Ridin', Fiddle-Playin', Book-Readin', Gun-Totin' Gentlemen Who Started America by Jonah Winter Simon & Schuster (2015)

    • Book Illustrator

  • Baby's First Tattoo: A Memory Book for Modern Parents by Jim Mullen, Simon & Schuster (2002)

    • Book Cover Art

  • Blown Covers by Françoise Mouly, Abrams Publishing (2012)

    • Awards and honors

  • Les Usherwood Lifetime Achievement Award 2016
  • Cover of the Year for Deluged published by The New Yorker, awarded by The American Society of Magazine Editors (2006)
  • Art Directors Club, Hall of Fame (2012)
  • Work showcased at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, the Royal Ontario Museum and the Museum of American Illustration in New York

    • Controversy

    Blitt's 2008 New Yorker cover depicting Michelle and Barack Obama standing in the Oval Office was labeled "tasteless and offensive" by Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton. A campaign spokesman for Senator John McCain also condemned the art. In the cover art, Obama is shown wearing traditional Muslim clothes, including sandals, robe and turban. His wife, Michelle is shown dressed in camouflage, combat boots and has an assault rifle over her shoulder. Behind them, an American flag is burning in the fireplace. Titled The Politics of Fear, the cover satirized the rumors about Obama and his wife as he ran for the presidency.

    The controversial art was covered by numerous media outlets including the Los Angeles Times, PBS and others. In defense of the art, Eric Bates of Rolling Stone was quoted as saying, "I don't think it (The New Yorker) crossed the line. I would question whether there's much of a line to be crossed. I think their intent was clear, but I think it's clear from the response that a lot of people didn't get the joke." The New York Times called it the most memorable image of the 2008 presidential campaign, and Françoise Mouly, the Art Editor of the New Yorker, said she was "extremely proud" of the piece. Regarding the controversy, Blitt was quoted as saying "Anytime I produce a cover, I always regret it afterward".

    The cover art was parodied later the same year by Entertainment Weekly, with a photograph by Jake Chessum featuring Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.

    In spite of the controversy and condemnation by the Obama campaign, after taking office President Barack Obama chose one of Blitt's New Yorker covers to hang in the White House. The cover depicts the President picking the family dog at the same time as he is vetting candidates for his national security cabinet. Additionally, President Obama requested and received a signed New Yorker cover by the artist, which depicts the President walking on water.

    Personal life

    Blitt currently resides in Connecticut His younger brother, Ricky Blitt, is a screenwriter, based in West Hollywood.

    Blitt is married to Angie Silverstein.

    References

    Barry Blitt Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA