Douglas Duer - forgotten american illustrator - 1887-1964

Douglas Duer is one of those forgotten illustrators.  

It would be worth rediscovering his work, because he has tremendous qualities.

Here are a few details about his life:

Douglas Duer — painter and illustrator of western, genre, and railroad subjects was born in Baltimore County, MD in 1887 and died in Huntington Valley, PA in 1964.  He had a studio in Wilmington from 1909 to 1917; in New York City around 1920; on 51 West 10th Street, Brooklyn, NY in 1926; in Philadelphia after 1929; and in Huntington Valley, PA from 1940 on. Duer did spend some time overseas during World War I.

In 1917, Duer enlisted in the army and served in France with the fortieth engineers, working with camoflage.  After the end of the war, he went on detached service in France and Germany, where he traveled in advance of occupying troops to copy German camoflage before it's destruction.  Duer stayed in touch with several Pyle students during the war, especially  Leslie Thrasher.
Duer returned to the United States in 1919, weakened by a severe illness. Yet, he resumed his art work and began the ten most productive years of his illustrating career. At the end of 1922 or the beginning of 1923, he moved to New York and set up a studio at 51 West Tenth Street. From 1919 to 1929 he illustrated for American Magazine, Country Gentleman, Everybody's,  Pictorial Review, and many others. In 1928, Doer moved to Philadelphia.  As well as working as an illustrator, he commuted weekly to Wilmington to teach at the Wilmington Academy of Art.
With he Depression came a change in the market for illustration, Duer, like many other illustrators, was affected by the difficult times. He found work in public programs, specifically in the mural programs in Philadelphia and, later, the WPA.  One of his morals was executed for the Philadelphia School Board at the J.S. Jenks School in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia The artist also made dioramas at this time.

In the late 1930's Duer returned to a small amount of bookjacket illustration, and in the 1940s he undertook advertising work. For a time, he was the art director for Beacom Chemical Company in Philadelphia and also designed greeting cards. Doer suffered a severe heart attack in 1952 and retired from all ciommercial work to paint solely for his own pleasure. Until his death in 1964, he painted mainly landscapes and figures, as well as enjoyed experimentation with different media and techniques. He also returned to writing, which had been an interest since his youth.