William H. Bradley Biography

William Henry Bradley (1868-1962) was an American Art Nouveau illustrator, artist and film director. Nicknamed the "Dean of American Designers" by The Saturday Evening Post, he was the highest-paid American artist of the early 20th century.

Bradley was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Aaron Bradley and Sarah Rowland. At the age of 12 he obtained a job as an apprentice for a weekly newspaper, the Iron Agitator, later known as the Iron Ore, in Ishpeming, Michigan. He had moved there with his mother to be with family after the death of his father. He left at 17 for Chicago, Illinois, where he held a few brief jobs as a wood engraver and typographer before dedicating himself to freelance graphic design. He moved back to Massachusetts and set up the Wayside Press, where he served as an illustrator, editor, typographer, designer, and press manager for a magazine he named Bradley, His Book. The periodical usually contained compilations of poetry, stories, and sketches, and his work received a warm reception. He had achieved financial success, but the stress of managing so many projects at once began to damage his health, and he collapsed at the age of 28. He recovered quickly, but he was forced to sell the Wayside Press.

From 1895 to about 1900, Bradley produced some of the elaborate posters and full-page magazine advertisements commissioned by ink manufacturer Ault & Wiborg; his designs have been collected by noted institutions, including Library of Congress and the University of Delaware.

He later worked as a consultant for the American Type Founders and as an editor for Collier's Weekly. He worked briefly with children's books, then for William Randolph Hearst's film division as a supervising art director and assistant director on the Wharton Brothers' serial films Beatrice Fairfax (1916) and Patria (1917).

Bradley founded his own production company, Dramafilms, and went on to write, produce and direct his own films, including Bitter Fruit (1920), Moongold (1920) and The Tame Cat (1921). In 1954, The Typophiles published a memoir of Bradley's life called Will Bradley: His Chap Book, a limited edition of 650 copies. The same year, he won the AIGA medal, the highest honour for graphic designers. He was a prolific artist and designer up until his death at age 93.