Background:

While The New Yorker magazine is known for the quality of its writing, many people also recognize the distinctive cover style and cartoons featured in the magazine.

We are pleased to feature a selection of original cover art from the first months of 1951.  The covers are noteworthy for the range of their subject matter - life of the upper and middle class, sporting activities and the "big city".

This series of covers also includes the portrait of the fictional Regency dandy -  Eustace Tilley - which appeared on the cover of the first The New Yorker, and reappeared every year on the issue closest to the date of the original February 21, 1925 issue.  The illustration is by Rea Irvin who also designed the logotype used on the cover.

The appeal of The New Yorker covers is best summarized by the following description from a book on the history of the magazine:   The covers capture "A special moment, fleetingly observed".