FOUR MEN IN A FURNACE BY RUSSELL HARLAN

 PART 9 OF A 17 PART SERIES ON FAVORITE ART AND ARTISTS

 

Black & white version of Russell Harlan's "Four Men In A Furnace."

I've always enjoyed drawing and writing, but by the time I got to High School, the only artist I knew of was Van Gogh, and that was because Snoopy had his paintings in his dog house! I did hear of a few others, but it wasn't until I studied art for a year at Yavapai College Verde Valley campus that I became familiar with most of the famous painters.

There was one artist that I noticed and enjoyed when I was in junior and senior high school, though. His name was Russell Harlan (1914-1972), and he was one of the illustrators for Arthur Maxwell's 10 volume The Bible Story. There were several full page pictures, and the artist of the painting was identified. Harlan's always stood out to me. 

I will admit: this may not be my favorite Harlan painting (though the color version is in the book). I no longer have access to The Bible Story. Probably my favorite painting in there was of a cheerful Paul waving as he was about to get on a boat, preceding the first story of the second section of vol. 10 (each volume had the stories divided into four sections). I don't remember if that was a Harlan or not, and I couldn't locate it.

Harlan also did art for 7th Day Adventist publications, which does not surprise me because Maxwell also was an Adventist. 

What are your thoughts of the above artwork? Do you have any memories of artwork you saw, whether or not you know who the artist was?