The Life of John La Gatta
Born in Naples, Italy, John La Gatta was an American advertising illustrator active during the first half of the 20th century. After his family emigrated to the United States, he showed an early talent for art and enrolled in the New York School of Fine and Applied Arts at age fifteen. He studied under Kenneth Hayes Miller and Frank Alvah Parsons, selling sketches to Life magazine to fund his education. His early career included designing film posters for the Lubian Film Company in Philadelphia and working for the N. W. Ayer advertising agency in New York City.
La Gatta's professional reach extended to many prominent magazines, including Ladies' Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, Woman's Home Companion, Redbook, McCall's, and Harper's Bazaar. He also painted twenty-two covers for the Saturday Evening Post. His advertising clients included brands such as Campbell's Soup, Ivory Soap, Kellogg's, and General Motors.
Technique and Later Years
At the peak of his career in the 1930s, La Gatta was known for his ability to produce an illustration a day. His technique involved working on illustration board with charcoal, which he then sprayed with fixative before over-painting with thin oil paint to allow the charcoal lines to remain visible. He often used a palette knife to add texture with color. He frequently used models from model agencies, the theater, and the Miss America pageant.
In 1941, La Gatta moved his family to California. While he continued advertising commissions for brands like Woodbury Soap, he eventually turned to portrait painting. In 1956, he served as an instructor at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, where he taught students such as Bob Peak and Mark English. He was posthumously inducted into the Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame in 1984.
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