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Wilfrid Swancourt Bronson

1894-10-24 – 1985-04-23

Portrait of Wilfrid Swancourt Bronson
Subject: Bronson, Sonia Joseph Bronson, Wilfrid S (Wilfrid Swancourt) 1894- Bingham Expedition Type: Black-and-white photographs Topic: Natural history illustration Local number: SIA Acc. 90-105 [SIA2007-0382] Summary: Wilfrid Swancourt Bronson (1894-1985) was a prolific popular science illustrator and author; he had accompanied the Bingham Expedition as an illustrator Cite as: Acc. 90-105 - Science Service, Records, 1920s-1970s, Smithsonian Institution Archives Persistent URL:http://siris-archives.si.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?&profile=all&source=~!siarchives&uri=full=3100001~!289395~!0#focus Repository:Smithsonian Institution Archives View more collections from the Smithsonian Institution.Credit: Smithsonian Institution from United States

Life & Legacy

Wilfrid Swancourt Bronson (October 24, 1894 – April 23, 1985) was an American natural history artist and a "prolific writer and illustrator of children's books on various aspects of animal life".

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Bronson attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Following his service in the U.S. Army during the first World War, he worked as a mural painter's assistant in several studios in New York City. In the 1930s and 40s he painted murals for the Works Progress Administration. Bronson accompanied several scientific marine expeditions as a staff artist, resulting in the creation of numerous nature books for children. In 1930 he was part of an expedition to the Galapagos to gather specimens for the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. In the 1920s he participated in expeditions led by Harry Payne Bingham to study and bring specimens and illustrations of marine life to the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale University, which holds many illustrations Bronson made on shipboard to capture the color and form of marine specimens in the era before color photography.

Occupation & Career

writer, children's writer, artist

Sources & Provenance

  1. Wikidata population candidate Q8001992 — wikidata View source

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