Le Mépris

Esta Nesbitt

All images by Esta Nesbitt at the Kellen Archives

I learned about Esta Nesbitt (1918 - 1975) while I was collecting material for an exhibition I'm co-curating. She was better known as an artist (her prints and mixed-media works are in the collection of the Brooklyn Museum) but I was really excited to see her fashion illustrations from the mid-'60s. Her style - especially in her paintings - can be languid and appealing, but sometimes graphic; occasionally on its way to reminding me of Rene Gruau.

Nesbitt was published in Mademoiselle, Harper's Bazaar and the New York Times, but you can see her original illustrations, rough drawings and stacks of tear sheets at the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Archives, Parsons' amazing collection of student work and documents from over nine decades.

NY Art Book Fair/Lubok

I've got so much schoolwork at this point that I shouldn't even be leaving the house. But I'm glad I cheated for the NY Book Fair! It was jam-packed full of amazing stuff, including these two books from Lubok.