Jessie Willcox Smith was one of the most prolific and acclaimed American illustrators that ever lived. Her drawings and paintings have been reproduced in more places than any female illustrator in the history of American illustration. During her professional career, from 1888 to 1932, Smith illustrated over sixty different books, many of which were reproduced in England. She also contributed over 450 separate illustrations in periodicals, including a color cover for Good Housekeeping on every issue for fifteen consecutive years. In addition, she produced dozens of posters, calendars, prints, and even picturial handkerchiefs. Near the end of her career, Smith also became well-known as an accomplished portrait artist.
Jessie Wilcox Smith was born September 6th, 1863 in Philadelphia. She attended private elementary schools there and at the age of 16 was sent to Cincinnati to live with her cousins where she finished her schooling and began a career as a kindergardern teacher.
She did not have much interest in drawing as a child and she did not display any extra ordinary artistic ability. However, she always found the world of art fascinating and would often visit in the art galleries and study the pictures for hours. She found out that she had art talent quite by accident. While she was chaperoning a private art tutoring class at a boy's school, a young art professor after viewing her attempts to draw recommended she attend art school. In 1884, she enrolled in the School of Design for Women in Philadelphia. There she excelled in all areas and even became proficient in clay sculpture. In 1885, Smith enrolled in the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, also in Philadelphia to learn the more technical aspects of drawing and painting. There she studied under Thomas Eakins, who was one of the first American artists to deal exclusively with contemporary subjects and insisted on detail and scientific accuracy in pictorial representation.