John Alcorn was an American commercial artist and designer, and an illustrator of children's books. In addition to his accomplishments in the areas of packaging, corporate and dimensional design, Alcorn designed the opening titles for several Federico Fellini films. During his career, Alcorn created numerous book jackets and paperback covers, and his work appeared in many major exhibits.
Alcorn's early career included work in the art department of Esquire magazine, a brief stint with a pharmaceutical advertising agency, and sound training at the Push Pin Studios, the celebrated design studio founded by Milton Glaser, Seymour Chwast, Reynold Ruffins, and Edward Sorel. In 1958, Alcorn joined CBS Radio and subsequently the CBS-TV art department, where he worked with Lou Dorfsman. In 1961, Alcorn left CBS to work as a freelancer.
1960s
In 1962, Alcorn designed and illustrated Books! by Murray McCain, which was selected as one of the best fifty books of the year by the American Institute of Graphic Arts. His other illustrations for children's books include The Abecedarian Book, Where in the World Do You Live?, Money Round the World, A Letter to Anywhere, as well as books for language teaching. In 1969, Alcorn's book Pocahontas in London won the "Critici in Erba" Prize at the 6th Bologna Children's Book Fair. Besides book illustrations, Alcorn designed numerous paperback covers, jackets, editorials, posters and advertisements. He worked with leading publishers such as Simon& Schuster, Little, Brown and Company, Pantheon Books, Random House, and others. In 1969, Alcorn was invited to join a group of international artists who were selected to create illustrations for Alan Aldridge's The Beatles Illustrated Lyrics. Alcorn was assigned to interpret the song Eight Days a Week. Alcorn created a series of works for Morgan Press: covers for its catalogues and yearly calendars. In 1970, Alcorn received the Augustus Saint-Gaudens Award. In 1971, the Japanese magazine IDEA dedicated an issue to John Alcorn's work and described him as one of the principal protagonists of the contemporary American graphic design.
Italian Period
In 1969, John Alcorn visited the village where his maternal grandparents were born, and was fascinated by the country and its culture. He spent two subsequent summers in Italy traveling across the country. In 1971, Alcorn and his family moved to Florence. He started collaborating with the Rizzoli publishing house and played an important role in redesigning the brand, its book covers and catalogues. Alcorn created the title designs for Federico Fellini's film Amarcord as well as Ginger and Fred and And the Ship Sails On.
Return to the United States
In 1977, Alcorn moved back to the United States, and worked on designing book covers and illustrations for various publishing houses as well as designing advertising materials.
Personal life
Following graduation from Cooper Union, Alcorn married and in 1962 settled in Ossining, New York, where he lived with his wife Phyllis, and their four sons. In 1971 he moved with his family to Florence, Italy. In 1977 he returned with his family to the United States, settling in Cold Spring, New York. In 1983 Alcorn and his wife moved to Hamburg Cove in Lyme, Connecticut.
Exhibitions and collections
Group exhibitions:
The Push Pin Style,.
Grafica sperimentale per la stampa, 36° Venice Biennale, 1972.
Stephen, Sabina & John Alcorn, Atrium Gallery, School of Fine Arts/Department of Art, University of Connecticut at Storrs, December 5-23, 1988.
Stephen & John Alcorn, Lustrare Gallery, Soho, New York, October 29-November 23, 1991.
John Alcorn received numerous awards from the New York Art Directors Club, the Society of Illustrators, AIGA, the Society of Publication Designers, and others. In 1968, he won first prize at the Bologna Children's Book Fair. He was the recipient of the prestigious Augustus Saint-Gaudens Medal from Cooper Union. In 1970, he was selected as the first graphic artist to be Artist-In-Residence at Dartmouth College. In 1987, he was Artist-In-Residence at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Other awards include:
He also illustrated and designed numerous book jackets and paperback covers, two print catalogs, and contributed illustrations to many periodicals, including McCall's, Playboy, and Sports Illustrated.
