Constantin Alajálov (also Aladjalov) (18 November 1900 — 23 October 1987) was an Armenian-American painter and illustrator. He was born in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, and immigrated to New York City in 1923, becoming a US citizen in 1928. Many of his illustrations were covers for such magazines as ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'', ''

The Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely ...

'', and '' Fortune''. He also illustrated many books, including the first edition of ''George Gershwin's Song Book''. His works are in New York's

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

and the Brooklyn Museum. He died in Amenia, New York.

Life

Constantin Alajálov was born in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, in 1900 to an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

family. In 1917, the Red Revolution broke out, interrupting Alajálov's time at the

University of Petrograd Saint Petersburg State University (SPBU; russian: Санкт-Петербургский государственный университет) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the G ...

. Unable to stay, Alajálov joined a government organized group of artists. Traveling the countryside, they painted large propaganda murals and posters for the revolution. After this, Alajálov emigrated to

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

and again started painting for a revolution until no longer safe. After his stay in Persia, Alajálov headed to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

, his last stop before he emigrated to America at age 23. Getting a job was hard, but he finally landed one, painting wall murals at a restaurant about to be opened by Russian Countess Anna Zarnekau. Within three years, Alajálov was selling his paintings to ''

'' magazine, where his first cover appeared on September 25, 1926. He went on to create more than 70 covers for the magazine. He also designed rugs for New York artist and entrepreneur Ralph Pearson. Alajálov's first cover for the '' Saturday Evening Post'' appeared on October 6, 1945; this was unusual in that he was also doing covers for ''The New Yorker'' at the time, and both publications ordinarily required exclusivity of their artists. His final cover was for the December 1, 1962, issue. That final cover portrayed an accomplished bridge player awakened from a dream, still analyzing her bridge hand. Many of his ''Saturday Evening Post'' cover paintings can be viewed at the American Illustrators Hall of Fame in Indianapolis. Alajalov died in New York in 1987. His papers are at Syracuse University, and the

Archives of American Art The Archives of American Art is the largest collection of primary resources documenting the history of the visual arts in the United States. More than 20 million items of original material are housed in the Archives' research centers in Washingt ...

. He bequeathed funding for a scholarship in his name to

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

, which also maintains a collection of his photographs and scrapbooks. The Boston University holdings include a painting of Alajálov by

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

Book Illustrations

*''Flamingo'', by

Mary Borden Mary Borden (May 15, 1886 – December 2, 1968) (married names: Mary Turner; Mary Spears, Lady Spears; pseud. Bridget Maclagan) was an American-British novelist and poet whose work drew on her experiences as a war nurse. She was the second of ...

(1927; Alajalov signed the dustjacket) *'' Tantivy Towers'', by

A. P. Herbert Sir Alan Patrick Herbert CH (A. P. Herbert, 24 September 1890 – 11 November 1971), was an English humorist, novelist, playwright, law reformist, and in 1935–1950 an independent Member of Parliament for Oxford University. Born in Ashtead, Su ...

(1931) *

, a New York contemporary of Russian-Jewish heritage, chose him to do a set of edgy drawings illustrating each of the 18 songs in the first editions of ''George Gershwin's Song Book'' (1932) *''Dithers and Jitters'', by

Cornelia Otis Skinner Cornelia Otis Skinner (May 30, 1899 – July 9, 1979) was an American writer and actress. Biography Skinner was the only child of actor Otis Skinner and actress Maud Durbin. After attending the all-girls' Baldwin School and Bryn Mawr College ...

(1938) *''Soap Behind the Ears'', by

(1941) *''Conversation Pieces'' (1942) was an autobiographical book of Alajálov's illustrations.

Janet Flanner Janet Flanner (March 13, 1892 – November 7, 1978) was an American writer and pioneering narrative journalist who served as the Paris correspondent of ''The New Yorker'' magazine from 1925 until she retired in 1975.Yagoda, Ben ''About T ...

wrote the text and commentary of the book. *''

Our Hearts Were Young and Gay ''Our Hearts Were Young and Gay'' is a book by actress Cornelia Otis Skinner and journalist Emily Kimbrough, published in 1942. The book presents a description of their European tour in the 1920s, when they were fresh out of college from Bryn M ...

'', by

& Emily Kimbrough (1942) *''Sophie Halenczik, American'', by Rose C. Feld (1943) *''Cinderella, Retold in Verse'', by Alice Duer Miller (1943) *''Married at Leisure'', by Virginia Lederer (pseudonym of Virginia Pringle) (1944) *''Esme of Paris'', by Esme Davis (1944) *''Outside Eden'', by Isabel Scott Rorick (1945) *''Hold Your Man'', by Veronica Dengel (1945) *''Timothy's Angels'', by

William Rose Benét William Rose Benét (February 2, 1886 – May 4, 1950) was an American poet, writer, and editor. He was the older brother of Stephen Vincent Benét. Early life and education He was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Col. James Walker Benét a ...

(1947) *''Family Album'', by Paul

Chavchavadze The House of Chavchavadze ( ka, ჭავჭავაძე) is a Georgian noble family, formerly a princely one (tavadi), later incorporated into the Russian nobility, also with the title of Prince. History The family is first attested in the ...

(1949) *''Nuts in May'', by

(1950) *''Bottoms Up!'', by

(1955) *''Aurora Dawn'', by

Herman Wouk Herman Wouk ( ; May 27, 1915 – May 17, 2019) was an American author best known for historical fiction such as ''The Caine Mutiny'' (1951) for which he won the Pulitzer Prize in fiction. His other major works include ''The Winds of War'' and ...

(1956) *''The Island Players'', by

Ilka Chase Ilka Chase (April 8, 1905 – February 15, 1978) was an American actress, radio host, and novelist. Biography Born in New York City and educated at convent and boarding schools in the United States, England, and France, Chase was the only child ...

(1956) *''Orpheus in America'', Offenbach's Diary of his Journey in the New World, translated by Lander MacClintock (1957) *''The Ape in Me'', by

(1959)

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20160304052534/http://www.curtispublishing.com/bios/Alajalov.shtml {{DEFAULTSORT:Alajalov, Constantin 1900 births 1987 deaths Russian people of Armenian descent American people of Armenian descent Artists from Rostov-on-Don Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States American magazine illustrators The Saturday Evening Post people The New Yorker people