TL;DR — Edward Penfield’s 1895 poster for the book About Paris shows the other half of his output — the book poster, alongside the Harper’s magazine covers that made his name. Made to advertise Richard Harding Davis’s travel book, illustrated by Charles Dana Gibson, it is Penfield at his most elegant and economical. This deep dive looks at the American book poster and Penfield’s command of it.
By Found Poster · Published September 2026
The book and the poster
About Paris was a collection of Parisian sketches by Richard Harding Davis — the era’s most famous reporter — published by Harper & Brothers in 1895 with illustrations by Charles Dana Gibson. Penfield’s poster advertised it in the shop window and on the hoarding, and it does the job with his usual economy: a poised figure, flat colour, generous empty space, and the title integrated as part of the design rather than stamped on top of it.
Penfield and the book poster
Penfield is best known for the Harper’s Magazine covers, but as the firm’s art director he also designed posters for Harper’s books, and these are among the finest American examples of the form. Where a magazine poster sold a single dated issue, a book poster sold a title with a longer life, and Penfield gave them a corresponding sense of permanence.
His restraint — the confidence to leave the sheet mostly empty — is even more striking at book scale. For a fuller account of Penfield’s career and the American poster craze, see the deep dive on his Harper’s Christmas cover.
An elegant economy
About Paris distils the Penfield method: a limited palette, a firm outline, a single well-placed figure, and lettering treated as design. It is the American answer to the French poster at its most composed — no crowds, no spectacle, just an image so well balanced it looks effortless. That quiet assurance is exactly why his work still feels modern more than a century later.
Where it belongs
A Penfield book poster suits a boutique hotel, a library bar, a bookshop café or any room with a literary, composed character. Its Paris subject and calm elegance make it a natural anchor for a travel- or reading-themed wall, hung alongside his magazine covers or the other American poster-craze designers.
Penfield’s book and magazine posters are catalogued individually in our archive, restored for printing. Browse Edward Penfield →
Frequently asked questions
What was About Paris?
A 1895 collection of Parisian sketches by the reporter Richard Harding Davis, published by Harper & Brothers with illustrations by Charles Dana Gibson; Penfield designed its advertising poster.
How is a book poster different from a magazine poster?
A magazine poster sold a single dated issue; a book poster advertised a title with a longer shelf life, and Penfield gave his book posters a corresponding sense of permanence.
Who was Edward Penfield?
Harper’s art director (1891–1901) and the leading figure of the American poster movement — see the deep dive on his Harper’s Christmas 1897 cover for the full account.
Further reading
- Penfield’s Harper’s Christmas cover — the fuller account
- Who was Edward Penfield? (scheduled in this series)
- David W. Kiehl, American Art Posters of the 1890s in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (1987)
Found Poster restores Belle Époque and Art Nouveau posters from museum archives into archival-quality files you print yourself. Browse the archive · How to print & frame.
