Joseph Pennell

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He studied briefly at the School of Industrial Design—today’s University of the Arts—and later attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts from 1878 to 1880, where his skill in etching was quickly recognized by his instructor, James L. Claghorn. Early in his career, he worked in New Orleans with writer George Washington Cable before traveling to Europe in 1881 to illustrate W.D. Howells’s writings on Italy.

While abroad, Pennell received a commission from Philip Gilbert Hamerton to illustrate a book on the Saône River. The project earned him wide recognition and led to collaborations with writers including Henry James, Justin McCarthy, and Sir Walter Besant. Over his career, he produced more than 1,800 etchings and lithographs—most created in Europe before 1917—depicting cities and architectural views with remarkable precision and atmosphere. To protect the integrity of his work, Pennell destroyed many of his early plates to prevent poor-quality reprints from entering circulation.

His series of twenty-three lithographs of the Panama Canal brought him international acclaim. The Italian government acquired the originals for the Uffizi Gallery and later purchased his lithographs of the Grand Canyon and Yosemite, completed during travels through the American West in 1912 and 1915. Pennell also created lithographs for both the United States and Great Britain during World War I, serving as a key artist in wartime propaganda efforts.

Over the course of his career, Pennell received numerous honors, including the First-Class Gold Medal at the 1900 Paris Exposition, the Grand Prize at the 1904 St. Louis Exposition, the Grand Prix in Milan in 1906, a Diplôme d’Honneur in Amsterdam in 1912, and a Commemorative Medal in France in 1915. He became an Associate of the National Academy of Design in 1907 and an Academician in 1909. A member of the New York Etching Club, Pennell also authored Lithography and Lithographers (1900) and illustrated many notable publications of his time.