Style Imitating Art: “Gosh! Do I Look as Old as All That!”

Style Imitating Art…

Welcome to Style Imitating Art which comes from Salazar, Shelbee, and me. You can think of this series as fashion meets art museum! SIA challenges people to find inspiration in different art works, create looks based upon that art work, and share them with the curator for that piece. Shelbee is the curator for this week’s art. I love the whimsy of Dr. Seuss’ drawings as well as his books. I hope you enjoy this post, the information, and my interpretation.

How it works…

Every other Monday one of us selects an inspiration piece of art and posts the image on their blog. We then invite others to interpret that art work through their style. The following Monday, we share our outfits. The curator shares submissions the following Wednesday on her blog. Shelbee chose this week’s art work for this round of Style Imitating Art. If you’d like, you can read why she chose it here. Please send your photo to Shelbee by Tuesday, May 21st by 10 pm EST. Style Imitating Art is an interesting way to inspire your outfits. You can see a few of my looks here, here, here, and here.

About the artist…

So, you think you know Dr. Seuss? I mean, I knew his name was Theodor Geisel, but there’s so much more I didn’t know about him! Theodor Seuss Geisel was born on March 2, 1904 in Springfield, Massachusetts. His parents were of Germanic descent so he and his sister, Marnie, experienced anti-German sentiments following the outbreak of World War 1 in 1914. Geisel lived on Fairfield Street which was a few streets away from…you guessed it…Mulberry Street. Geisel’s first forays into the literary world occurred at Dartmouth College. Before graduating in 1925, Geisel got up to a few shenanigans while there. He joined Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity as well as the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern (a humor magazine). Geisel worked his way up to editor-in-chief, but after being caught drinking gin with friends in his room, he was forced to resign from all extracurricular activities, including the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern. Remember, this was during Prohibition when the possession and consumption of alcohol was illegal. The wily young man continued working on the magazine under a pseudonym…Seuss!

A little more…

Geisel enrolled at Lincoln College, Oxford (yes, that Oxford) with the intent of earring a Doctor of Philosophy in English Literature. It was at Oxford that he would meet his first wife, Helen Palmer. She urged him to give up the educator’s life to become an artist. Being a wise man, Geisel left Oxford without a degree and returned to the US in 1927 and began submitting writings and drawings to magazines, book publishers, and advertising agencies. It wasn’t until July 16, 1927 that Geisel garnered any attention on a national level. He published a cartoon in The Saturday Evening Post. That was all the encouragement the young Geisel needed in order to move to New York City! After getting a job as a writer and illustrator at Judge, a humor magazine, Geisel decided he was financially ready to get married. His first cartoon appeared on October 22, 1927, and the couple married on November 29. Approximately six months after starting Judge, he began signing his work “Dr. Seuss.” And, literature, libraries, and reading were changed forever!

“Ted’s notebooks were always filled with these fabulous animals. So I set to work diverting him; here was a man who could draw such pictures; he should be earning a living doing that.”

Even more…

Eventually, Geisel’s cartoons were noticed by the makers of “Flit,” a bug spray made by Standard Oil of New Jersey. One of the wives (isn’t it always the wives) of an account exec saw one of Geisel’s cartoons and told her husband to sign the man! The catch phrase for this bug spray was “Quick, Henry, the Flit!” I couldn’t find anything that said Geisel wrote it, but he did create the illustrations to go along with the phrase. That phrase provided Geisel with the exposure he needed, and his work began appearing regularly in magazines such as Life, Liberty, and Vanity Fair.

Still more…

Ironically, Geisel was now making more money from advertising work and magazine submissions than his most successful Dartmouth classmates. The Geisels moved to a nicer home and socialized in higher circles. As they didn’t have children, didn’t worry about office hours, and had plenty of money, the Geisels traveled. He believed traveling made him more creative, and after visiting 30 countries by 1936, he must have been quite creative! Geisel also created advertising for Standard Oil products like Essomarine boat fuel and Essolube Motor Oil as well as companies like the Ford Motor Company, NBC Radio Network and Holly Sugar.

Books…

In 1931, under the pseudonym, Dr. Seuss, Geisel published The Pocket Book of Boners. Now that you’ve stopped giggling, this was a book about “howlers” or blunders. There were 22 illustrations of these blunders (not gonna call them the other b-word as this isn’t that kind of blog) with the rest of the book being short jokes and humorous observations. The book was at the top of  The New York Times non-fiction bestseller list and led to a sequel, More Boners, published the same year. The rhythm of an ocean liner’s engines ended up as a poem which led to his first children’s book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. That book was rejected as many as 43 times before Geisel met up with an old Dartmouth classmate. That led to the book’s publication by Vanguard Press. Geisel managed to write four more books before the US entered WWII. Those were The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, The King’s Stilts, and The Seven Lady Godivas. While these three books were written in prose, he also wrote Horton Hatches the Egg which was, of course, in verse.

World War II…

In the early years of the war, Dr. Seuss (let’s just switch here) began drawing political cartoons which eventually became Dr. Seuss Goes to War. He was extremely critical of Hitler and Mussolini as well as isolationists like Charles Lindbergh. His work, during this time, was very much against the racism targeting Jews and Blacks. In 1943, he joined the Army as a captain. Eventually, he was the commander of the Animation Department of the First Motion Picture Unit of the United States Army Air Force, writing films and was awarded the Legion of Merit.

Post war years…

Dr. Seuss and his wife moved to La Jolla, California. Here, he began writing the many books we remember. First was If I Ran the Zoo followed by Horton Hears a Who, If I Ran the Circus, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and countless others. One of the things I remember learning about Dr. Seuss during my college days was his impact on early readers. When William Ellsworth Spaulding, director of the education division at Houghton Mifflin, read the 1954 Life report on illiteracy, he compiled a list of 348 words he felt first graders should be able to read. But, he gave it to Dr. Suess and told him to cut the list to 250 words, then write a book using only those words. The report on illiteracy said children weren’t learning to read because the books they were given were boring. So, Spaulding also asked that the book be one “children can’t put down.” Within nine months, The Cat in the Hat, which uses only 236 of those words, was given to Spaulding. Other examples of these “Beginner Books” are Green Eggs and Ham, One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, Hop on Pop, and Fox in Socks. And, I used many of those books to help my students learn to read when I was a special education teacher.

A little more…

In 1955, Dartmouth awarded Dr. Seuss an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters. The citation read:

Creator and fancier of fanciful beasts, your affinity for flying elephants and man-eating mosquitoes makes us rejoice you were not around to be Director of Admissions on Mr. Noah’s ark. But our rejoicing in your career is far more positive: as author and artist you singlehandedly have stood as St. George between a generation of exhausted parents and the demon dragon of unexhausted children on a rainy day. There was an inimitable wriggle in your work long before you became a producer of motion pictures and animated cartoons and, as always with the best of humor, behind the fun there has been intelligence, kindness, and a feel for humankind. An Academy Award winner and holder of the Legion of Merit for war film work, you have stood these many years in the academic shadow of your learned friend Dr. Seuss; and because we are sure the time has come when the good doctor would want you to walk by his side as a full equal and because your College delights to acknowledge the distinction of a loyal son, Dartmouth confers on you her Doctorate of Humane Letters.

A skosh more…

On October 23, 1967, Dr. Seuss’ wife, Helen, committed suicide. He married his second wife, Audrey Dimond, on June 21, 1968. He didn’t have children with either wife and said, “You have ’em; I’ll entertain ’em.” In 1980, Dr. Seuss/Geisel received an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters from Whittier College. That same year, he received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal from the professional children’s librarians. this was in recognition of his “substantial and lasting contributions to children’s literature”. He also won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1984 “citing his “contribution over nearly half a century to the education and enjoyment of America’s children and their parents.”

Controversy and death…

As hard as it is to believe, Dr. Seuss believed in the internment camps for Japanese Americans during the second World War. His argument was these American citizens could be possible spies, and the camps would prevent sabotage. After the war, he re-examined his beliefs and wrote Horton Hears a Who which was an allegory for the American post-war occupation of Japan. He also dedicated the book to a Japanese friend. Dr. Seuss Enterprises, which now controls the Seuss estate, stopped publishing and licensing six books, saying they “portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong.” Among those was And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. On September 24, 1991, Dr. Seuss died of cancer at home in La Jolla. His ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean.

About the art work..

I have tried and tried to find information about the original piece of art. All I can find is that it is circa 1961 and uses ink and watercolor on board. You can purchase a numbered serigraph on archival canvas from this site. It is an authorized estate edition and measures 16 x 12 in (40.6 x 30.48 cm) with additional canvas border. The art was “adapted posthumously from the circa 1961 original ink and watercolor on board.” This is a limited edition of 850 Arabic numbers and will only cost you $1,295 unframed.

My interpretation…

Well, dang! I don’t own anything feathered…not a single boa! So, I decided to rely on the colors I saw in the art work, pinks and blues. I know the art is a little on the morose side, but I couldn’t help pairing these two joyful pieces. I knew, almost immediately, I was going to wear this Rhiannon kimono from Kantha Bae, but I wasn’t sure how to bring in the dark colors of the work. Then, I spied this Eileen Fisher Tiered Pleated dress, and I knew I had exactly what I needed! Every once in a while I do splurge on an item, and this dress was definitely that. I’ve worn it several times, but it will be a bit before I get my CPW down! I actually really like this outfit and will wear it again…just not on such a warm day!

The Lewk!

I love a wedge…I even love wedge salads! These Woman’s Delight Slide Sandals by L’Artiste aren’t quite as comfortable as I know they soon will be. Those leather straps and flowers are still a bit stiff. I probably haven’t ever mentioned most L’Artiste shoes and sandals close with Velcro! I know there are some who say this makes them frumpy. I think it makes them easy on and off! The necklace and earrings are from J Jill. The necklace is on clearance. I can’t find it online, but you might be able to find it in your local store.

Wrap it up, Marsha!

This may not mean much to anyone but me…Geisel was a Missouri Synod Lutheran his entire life. I am an Indiana-Kentucky Synod Lutheran! Can I see the influence of the church’s teachings in his work? Not really…in fact, I was rather taken aback by his vehemence over the Japanese American internment camps. I don’t think we should give people an instant pass because “that’s how it was done then.” Do I still love his books? Yes, I definitely do. So, can we talk? How do you feel about Seuss’ political statements? How do you feel about the removal of any book because it contains something that might be considered offensive to any population? Did you know Dr. Seuss created art other than for his books? Please leave me a comment or two, and we can talk. I promise to respond as quickly as I can.

Don’t forget…

If you want to be included in the Style Imitating Art round up, send me your photo by 10:00 EST Tuesday, May 21st. Photos of everyone participating will appear on Shelbee’s blog on Wednesday, May 22nd! This gorgeous painting has lots of colors and textures as well as a theme to use as inspiration. Come on, give it a try!

Thank you!

I want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for reading, commenting, subscribing or emailing! It truly means so much to me! If you’d like to follow me on Instagram, you can find me here.

Affiliate links, discount codes and such:

Just a reminder that Marsha in the Middle may use an affiliate link. Those links are usually italicized. If you click or make a purchase from an italicized link I provide, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for your support. I am an April Cornell Brand Ambassador for another season. You can use my code, MARSHA15, for $15 off any order over $100. Use Marsha12 for 12% off any order of $65 or more at Buykud. I have also become a Halftee Partner. Use the code, MARSHA2098, for 20% off any purchase. I am also an affiliate with Clara Sunwoo. You can use my code, MARSHA10, for 10% off your entire order. In case you didn’t know, bloggers must disclose the use of affiliate links. That’s why I include this in each post.

Where you can find me:

Linking up with Nancy’s Fashion Style,  Fine-Whatever, Is This Mutton, Shelbee on the Edge, Chez Mireile, The Grey Brunette, and Away from the Blue as well as Deb’s World and A Fresh Cup of Coffee. I also link up with This Blonde’s Shopping Bag, Doused in Pink, I do deClaire, Mummabstylish, Style Splash and Elegantly Dressed and Stylish as well as the Senior Salon Pit Stop (Esme’s Salon). Please check out these wonderful ladies and their blogs! I also am a co-host for Ageless Style on the third Thursday of the month and Songful Style on the last Monday of the month. I co-host Traffic Jam Weekend every Thursday with Melynda, Lisa, and Sue. I also host Final Fridays on the last Friday of the month as well as 10 on the 10th on the 10th of the month! I do hope you’ll check out all of these blogs and link parties!

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