Illustrations

The illustrations for Nicholas: A Manhattan Christmas Story were done by Jay Van Everen who lived from 1875 to 1947 (Whitney Museum of Art, 1972). Van Everen was born in Westchester, New York and attended the Cornell School of Architecture. He remained mostly in the world of academia studying at several art schools and producing paintings like murals and illustrations for various parties. He was also affiliated with the synchromism art movement that was based on the relationship between color, music, shape, and form (Roberts, 1988). Because Van Everen's art did not receive much acclaim publicly, his work remained largely unknown until 1972 when the Whitney Museum of Art in New York came across a collection of his work stored in their permanent collection including paintings, watercolors, and drawings. These works (see Figures 19, 20, & 21) contain attention to both shape and precision, reflections of his role in the synchromism movement and his background in architecture. 

Figure 19
Painting by Jay Van Everen (Unknown Title and Mediums)
(Image from Archive.org)

Figure 20
Painting by Jay Van Everen (Unknown Title and Mediums)
(Image from Askart.com)

Figure 21
Untitled Watercolor and Ink on Paper by Jay Van Everen
(Image from Caldwellgallery.com)

Decorated and illustrated books can be divided into two time periods: one, the MS period, or the period before printing was invented, and two, the period of printed books seen after the invention of the printing press which took place in mid-fifteenth century (Crane, 1905).  Nicholas: A Manhattan Christmas Story was published in 1924, after the invention of the printing press.

The illustrations are printed in black ink only and are what could be characterized as "stamp-like" in that the illustrations are usually contained with a shape such as an oval or a square (see Figures 22 & 23). 

Figure 22

The illustrations are also extremely measured; the pictures are very precise made from thick, bold, intentional lines and are in no way loose or sketch-like. The precision and the presence of shape seen in these illustrations is similar to Everen's regular works of art in that they, again, seem to reflect his background in architecture as well as his involvement with the synchromism movement. 

Figure 23

Despite their precise layout, the illustrations are often times quite fantastical in content. For example, this illustration (see Figure 24) is of Nicholas riding Gunther, a giant tortoise he meets at the Bronx Zoo. These imaginative illustrations are common in children's literature during the 1920s when books for children were written with only entertainment in mind. 

Figure 24