Textile, Hook 'n' Ladder

Laura Jean Allen, the illustrator known for covers of The New Yorker and for her children’s books, was one of Associated American Artists’ most prolific artists. Her creations ranged from textiles to ceramics, and she often served as the face of AAA in its magazine advertisements. (1)
Hook ‘n’ Ladder features old-fashioned firefighters and their equipment, including axes and horse-drawn carriages. The figures appear in stylized combinations of line drawings and solid blocks of color, including a distraught woman who holds a baby and perches atop a stack of detached bricks. Solid rectangles in black, brown, and light blue form the ground, while the figures are rendered in light blue, yellow, and pink. This is one of five of Allen’s textile designs being presented for consideration.
Multiple examples of Allen’s work, including garments fashioned from her Sunspots and Imperial Seal prints, are included in the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art’s traveling exhibition, “Art for Every Home: Associated American Artists, 1934-2000.”

(1) Gail Windisch, Sylvan Cole Jr., and Karen J. Herbaugh, Art for Every Home: Associated American Artists, 1934-2000 (Manhattan: Marianna Kistler Beach Museum, Kansas State University, 2016): 208.
(2) Ibid., 214-215.
(3) Karen J. Herbaugh, “Index of AAA Textile Designs,” in Art for Every Home: An Illustrated Index of Associated American Artists Prints, Ceramics, and Textile Designs (Manhattan: Marianna Kistler Beach Museum, Kansas State University, 2016), http://hdl.handle.net/2097/19686.

Textile, Hook 'n' Ladder; Designed by Laura Jean Allen (American, 1916 - 2003); Produced by Associated American Artists (United States); cotton; H x W: 94.6 × 88.9 cm (37 1/4 in. × 35 in.); American Textile History Museum Collection, gift of Karen Herbaugh; 2016-35-44