Hirschfeld, Al (1903-2003), was an American artist known for his caricatures of theater personalities and events. Hirschfeld’s caricatures are known for their skillful use of thin black lines to create shapes and feelings.
Albert Hirschfeld was born on June 21, 1903, in St. Louis, Missouri. He studied at the Art Students League in New York City and in Paris, intending to become a painter and sculptor. Hirschfeld started submitting drawings to New York newspapers in the mid-1920’s and began a relationship with The New York Times in 1927.
Hirschfeld’s daughter, Nina, was born in 1945. For decades, he wove her name into his caricatures. Hirschfeld added a small number next to his signature that indicates how many times “Nina” appears in the drawing. Readers have made a game of locating all the “Ninas” in each caricature.
Hirschfeld’s drawings have been collected in several volumes, including The American Theatre As Seen by Hirschfeld (1961), Hirschfeld (1979), Hirschfeld: Art and Recollections from Eight Decades (1991), and Hirschfeld On Line (1999). He also illustrated books. Hirschfeld had several one-man shows of his sculptures, and his caricatures are in the collections of numerous American art museums. Hirschfeld died on Jan. 20, 2003.
