• Skip navigation and go to content
  • Go to navigation

Norman Rockwell Museum

  • Visit
    • Hours & Admission
    • Directions
    • Exhibitions
  • Learn
    • Programs
    • School Programs
    • Curriculum Lab
  • Research
    • Norman Rockwell Collection
    • Archives and Library
    • Rockwell Center for Americal Visual Studies
    • IllustrationHistory.org
    • Frank Schoonover Collection Raisonné
  • Donate
    • Make a Gift
    • Become a Member
  • Shop
  • Calendar
  • Contact
    • Staff Directory
    • Norman Rockwell Museum e-newsletter sign-up
    • Careers
    • What's my Rockwell Worth?
      FAQ

Illustration History

  • History
  • Artists
  • Genres
  • Essays
  • Resources
  • Podcast
  • History
    • Time Periods
  • Artists
  • Genres
  • Essays
  • Resources
  • Podcast
Home > Artists > Dorothy Hood

Dorothy Hood

Born: 1902 | Died: March 17, 1970

Dorothy Hood

Biography

Dorothy Hood was born in New Holland, Pennsylvania in 1902. Hood’s early interest in art led her to attend the New York School of Applied Design and the Art Students League of New York. While working for Macy’s department store she met art director Harry Rodman. When he started a position with Lord & Taylor he brought Hood along with him. Rodman used Hood’s talents to capitalize on his new advertising strategies in the 1930s.[1] His goal was to promote the store’s personality and fashion identity through the use of fine art.[2] Hood’s unique style of black-and-white wash drawings were ideal for newspaper reproduction and were instantly recognizable as Lord & Taylor’s, reflecting their brand.[3]

Hood worked directly from life, posing her models to mimic real life activities women could identify with. She tended to include minimal backgrounds to add more dimension to her scenes.[3] Hood also designed the logo for Lord & Taylor, and she and other illustrators such as Jean Karnoff, Helen Hall, and Carl Wilson incorporated this logo into advertisements for the store.[1] Hood’s successful illustrations appeared in newspapers and magazines for decades, providing the public with a sense of what the well-dressed American woman should be wearing.[3]

While on a vacation in Bermuda in the 1950s, Hood was in a motor bike accident that seriously injured her right arm. She taught herself to draw with her left hand so she could continue illustrating for Lord & Taylor, which was a difficult transition for the artist.[3]

Dorothy Hood, known as Lord & Taylor’s top illustrator at the time, died on March 17, 1970 of cancer at Doctors Hospital in Manhattan. She was inducted into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 1992. Many of her illustrations are among the 20th century fashion illustrations in the Frances Neady collection at the Fashion Institute of Technology.[1]

 

 

Entry written by Rachel Mancour, 2019 Walt Reed Distinguished Scholar Intern

 

 

Footnotes:

[1] “Dorothy Hood (Illustrator).” Wikipedia. 22 May 2018. July 9, 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Hood_%28illustrator%29.

[2] “Harry Rodman, 75, Directed Lord & Taylor Advertising.” New York Times. February 19, 1976. July 9, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/1976/02/19/archives/harry-rodman-75-directed-lord-taylor-advertising.html.

[3] Karlen, Dave. “Society of Illustrators Profile: Dorothy Hood.” Dave Karlen Original Art Blog. November 1, 2013. July 9, 2019. http://davekarlenoriginalartblog.blogspot.com/2013/11/society-of-illustrators-profile-dorothy.html.

 

Image from: https://archive.org/stream/directorschoicee00phil#page/18/mode/1up/search/Hood

Illustrations by Dorothy Hood

UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-dorothyhood-1964
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-largefurcoat
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-thecollegeshop
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/dorothyhood-untitled-1965
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-1961
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-1956
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-1966
UntitledUnknownhttps://www.illustrationhistory.org/illustrations/untitled-1965

Additional Resources

Bibliography

Genres
  • Advertising
    • Corporate
    • Political and Public Service
    • Product
    • Self-Promotion
  • Books
    • Children’s Books
    • Cover Art
    • Interior Illustration
  • Cartooning
    • Advertising
    • Caricature
    • Political and Editorial
    • Sports
    • Spot
  • Comics
    • Comic Books
      • Manga
    • Comic Strips
  • Decorative & Applied Illustration
    • Info Graphics
    • Murals
    • Portraiture
  • Fantasy
    • Adventure
    • Fairy Tales and Fables
    • Mythology
  • Fashion
    • Advertising
    • Design
  • Graphic Novels
    • Fiction
    • Non-Fiction
    • Visual Memoir and Autobiography
  • Internet Illustration
    • Web Comics
    • Website Illustration
  • Magazine
    • Cover Art
    • Story Illustration
  • Moving Image
    • Animation
    • Concept Art
    • Storyboard
    • Video Game Design
  • Newspaper
  • Non-Commissioned Work
  • Poster
    • Event (Promotional)
    • Film
    • Political
    • Propaganda
    • Travel
  • Product Illustration
    • Album/CD
    • Calendars
    • DVD/VHS/Videogame
    • Greeting Cards
    • Packaging
    • Paper Dolls
    • Postage Stamps
  • Pulp Illustration
    • Pinup Art
    • Pulp Magazines
  • Science Fiction
    • Creatures
    • Outer Space
    • Technology
  • Technical
    • Anatomy
    • Archaeological
    • Architecture
    • Courtroom Drawings
    • Horticulture
    • Mechanical
    • Natural History
Global Perspectives
  • North America
  • Europe
  • Asia
RELATED ARTISTS
  • Rolf Armstrong Rolf Armstrong
  • Aubrey Beardsley Aubrey Beardsley
  • Paul Bowermaster Paul Bowermaster
  • Howard Chandler Christy Howard Chandler Christy
  • Mac Conner Mac Conner
  • Jean Cunningham Jean Cunningham
  • Gil Elvgren Gil Elvgren
  • Charles Dana Gibson Charles Dana Gibson
  • Thea Kliros Thea Kliros
  • Hilary Knight Hilary Knight
  • Coles Phillips Coles Phillips
Related Time Periods
  • The Decade 1950-1960 The Decade 1950-1960
  • The Decade 1960-1970 The Decade 1960-1970

Support the Project

We need your help to keep this project alive and growing. How can you help?

Submit Work
Make A Donation
About The Project

Stay Informed

Join our mailing list to receive updates about this growing project.

Art Works. National Endowment for the Arts. arts.gov

This project is supported in part by an award
from the National Endowment for the Arts.

"The great band of illustrators have shown us to ourselves and I am proud to be among their company."
- Norman Rockwell

©Copyright 2020 Norman Rockwell Museum
9 Route 183, Stockbridge, MA 01262 | 413.298.4100
Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions |
Equity & Justice Commitment