NEW YORK—It is with great pleasure that the American Illustrators Gallery announces its winter exhibition, Happy Holidays America, which will be on display from November 2010 through January 2011. Featured artists include treasured guardians of the American holiday spirit such as JC Leyendecker, George Hughes, Jessie Willcox Smith, Roy Spreter, John Falter, and Elbert McGran Jackson.

To experience the American holiday season is to experience the heart of the contemporary family spirit of our country. The jolly vision of Santa Claus that we all know and love, gained popularity and definition alongside the Golden Age of Illustration itself. It is natural to see that these artists embraced such a newly minted phenomenon with joy and wit. In fact, the annual lighting of the Christmas tree at the White House began in 1923, at a time when many of these illustrators were at the height of their careers.

J.C. Leyendecker (1874–1957) was consistently given the holiday issues of popular magazines to illustrate. Good Boy is a concentrated look at the plight of the pre-holiday urban boy: his face is scrubbed to a bright sheen, his brow is furrowed with good intentions, and the wings earned for good behavior are small but true. There is a deadline to this angelic moment, and Leyendecker makes it resound.

A softer rhythm accompanies all of Jessie Willcox Smith’s (1863–1935) holiday portrayals of children. The light touch of the “greatest of the children’s book illustrators” is seen here in the pert nursery rhyme Little Jack Horner and the symbolic New Year’s Baby, her interpretation of the newborns Leyendecker often painted to ring in the New Year.

Another illustrator with a delicate finish, Roy Spreter (1899–1967) was appreciated for his advertising flair and his beautiful treatment of heroines. Children on Christmas Morning with RCA Radio showcases Spreter’s understanding of the warm overtones of middle America.

George Hughes (1907–1990) uses a bright, complementary palette in Night Before Christmas to cast a sympathetic light-heartedness onto the end of tree-trimming duties. Hughes’ sophisticated illustrations always kept his family-oriented readership in mind.

Mother and Daughter with Baby Grabbing at Girls’ Hair is one of 50 covers Al Parker (1906–1985) created for Ladies’ Home Journal, and his realistic style still allowed for his personal stamp to shine: his hand-lettered treatment of “Journal” ensures Parker’s art takes center stage.

For more information on Happy Holidays America call 212.744.5190 or visit our website at www.americanillustrators.com. American Illustrators Gallery is located at 18 East 77th Street near Madison Avenue. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.