Edward Penfield: The Magenta Village, 1906

This piece appeared in Scribner's Monthly Magazine for July 1906. The illustrations aren't directly related to the text, nor was it clear which village it was. From a crude map within text, it appears to be at the intersection of railroad tracks and a canal just west of the Zuyder Zee, whence he came. Suffice to say, Penfield has identified it only as the Magenta Village and if you have any suggestions to its identity, please feel free to comment. Again, we see a lovely page layout and a wonderful chapter heading.

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Click on images to enlarge

These individual illustrations are so good that they deserve closer inspection. If only the primitive reproduction process of the day and the fading of printing inks used hadn't dulled the color.

Click on image to enlarge this interior of a shoe shop where klompen are sold. This appears to have been drawn from photos, models set up in a way that illustrators usually work from. I would bet that the character on the right is the author-illustrator himself (see inset). Penfield wrote: "The shoe-shop did not display a large gold sign or show any indication outside of its nature, but those of us who wished a pair of wooden klompen, and visited the shop for that purpose, soon found that shoes were a minor consideration, and fell to sketching the interior, continuing our purchasing only as an excuse for our staying. The walls were of wood, painted Indian red. Things partly used and party saved were strewn here and there. Yellow tarpaulins and blue fishing coats hung from the rafters, and a Delft tiled fireplace with old copper and brass belongings shone in its dark casement."

Click on image above to enlarge. Penfield describes the scene: "Everyone seemed to be a symphony as we stood there. When the men removed their big blue patched coats they exposed magenta-colored shirts–some new, others faded to soft purples and grays, with new patches of bright magenta and other patches of the same color in different weather-worn degrees. With partly closed eyes, looking down the broad pathway, magenta was overwhelming. It showed on the red tiles of the tiny houses, on the shirts of the men, it peeped up from the brick pavement, and a soft haze near the horizon scintillated the colors. The blue and black in the girls' costumes and the greenish-blue gables served only to accentuate the color and made it more pleasing. 'Let us call it the Magenta Village,' said the girl in the sun-bonnet. An English painter and his wife echoed her statement, and we straightaway proceeded to the café to christen our new-found haven." We have no introduction to those mentioned above and can only guess that he had journeyed to the village to meet up with the English painter and his wife and perhaps work in his studio. Penfield does write: "Days of work under the tiled and moss-grown roof ot the attic studio, lined with old patched sails, bleached and rotted by sun and water, but breathing stories of the sea; Lypje, with cheeks and neck like rose-leaves on ivory, tall, hoydenish, but good natured, and her old uncle, whose days for the trawling net and line were over . . . . " Was Lypje the girl in the sun-bonnet? I guess we'll never know. Perhaps this is her uncle, described above. A wonderful pen-and-ink drawing.

Comments

[W. Eberhard Falck]

What strikes me is a stylistic similarity (up to a point) between Penfield and Carl Larsson. I think (quoting from my memory) would have studied about the same time in Paris. Perhaps it is just the style of the time - during the period of the Art Nouveau this kind of illustration seems to have flourished.

Indeed, the Voldendam (and more so the museum village at Enkhuizen) still is dominated by magenta hues, though the magenta shirts and baggy black trousers have disappeared.

[Betty]

This is one of my ALL time favorite set of illustrations. When I first saw these two years ago (not sure where) it inspired pages and pages of fashion drawings in my own journals. I keep the image of what I think is Penfield in Dutch clothing here on my bulletin board. He is my very favorite illustrator. Thank you so much for giving the history of the origin of these drawings.
I adore his description of his surroundings in the clog shop. He is perfection for me. The quintessential illustrator. You have an exceptional site here. Thank you so much for sharing. Betty.

[Bill Nelson]

The Magenta Village is Volendam. The VD on the registration number of the fishing boat confirms that, but the images are characteristic of Volendam. I have photographic images from 1904 of both Volendam and Marken, some of which correspond to Penfield's illustrations, if you're interested.