Joseph Christian Leyendecker (1874-1951), credited as J.C. Leyendecker, was a German-American commercial artist active in the early 20th century. Leyendecker began his artistic training in Chicago, where he was raised after his family's emigration to the United States, before spending some time in Paris, becoming exposed to the pioneers of the Art Nouveau movement.
After moving back to Chicago, Leyendecker began working in advertising in earnest. He was also a longtime illustrator for The Saturday Evening Post. He relocated to New York in 1902 and continued this line of work for several companies all the way through the 1920s. He was commissioned to advertise a variety of industries (from automobiles to cereal), but was best known for his clothing ads, particularly for men. One of the most well-known ad campaigns by him is the "Arrow Collar Man", which depicted handsome men advertising Arrow's detachable shirt collars.
His output slowed during the 1930s. Although he continued working until his death in 1951, his career never reached the heights it had before The Great Depression.
Although he never clarified it himself, Leyendecker is widely agreed on to have been gay; his partner Charles Beach was also one of his longtime models.
Leyendecker's commissioned work is known for its sleek depictions of well-dressed urbanites. His distinctive art style includes warm colors, sharp lines, beautiful detailed clothing, and an emphasis on crosshatching. It is now seen as emblematic of the laissez-faire and glamorous attitudes of The Roaring '20s.
