The Kewpies
DateJune 1928
Artist
Rose O'Neill
(American artist, cartoonist, and writer 1874–1944)
Illustration CitationThe Delineator (June 1928)
MediumInk on paper
Dimensionssheet: 22 1/2 × 17 1/4 in. (57.2 × 43.8 cm)
Credit LineGift of the Rose O'Neill Foundation, 2018
Object number2018-77
On View
Not on viewClassificationsDRAWING
Label TextRose O'Neill's cherubic characters in this cartoon are Kewpies, creations she described as benevolent elves "who (do) good deeds in a funny way." Here, they puncture the pomposity of a wealthy but grumpy man with their expressions of innocence and glee. After their 1909 debut in the Ladies Home Journal, the Kewpies - derived from the small Cupids that decorated O'Neill's illustrations of love stories - appeared in various magazines and advertisements and then gained more popularity through a plethora of licensed merchandise and books. The Kewpie enterprise, which began to wane toward the end of the 1930s, made O'Neill a wealthy and independent woman.
