HISTORY ILLUSTRATIONS

DEFINITION OF HISTORY ILLUSTRATIONS
An illustration is a kind of painting or drawing whose main aim is to explain or visually represents a printed text. Pictures use different styles and techniques such as drawing, painting, multimedia, 3D and 2D dimensions and digital schemes. Also, illustrations vary depending on their purposes with the main areas being book illustrations, information graphics or figures, scientific illustration, narrative illustrations, media illustrations and picture books. Most illustrations were done in using charcoal, ink and metal points but due to diversification complicated print processes emerged such as lithography, photography, woodcuts and engraving.
TYPES OF HISTORY ILLUSTRATIONS
The technical picture also referred to as the scientific illustration aims at communicating related scientific information and expressing imageries effectively and efficiently and in return deliver certain information. Moreover, it intends to describe subjects to an audience (non-technical) to enhance the viewer`s natural understanding. The visual images are required to be precise regarding quantity and measurements providing a full impression of what the object does and what it entails. The technical drawings include clip arts and cutaway drawings using certain techniques to help in drawing such as lateral projections and perspective projections.
Additionally, the technical illustrations depend on communication between highly skilled experts and general public. Technical illustrations meant for the public as a whole use imageries and symbols that are easy to understand, and this is known as the original drawing.

On the other hand, the communications for skilled experts is meant for scientists and engineers, and they use technical illustrations that are only understood by the experts only. For instance, information that is found on operation booklets used by the skilled experts it can be complicated and only the experienced experts themselves are in a position to interpret the information. Examples of images in the technical communications include conventional drawings, cutaway drawings, and clip art drawings.
Information graphics or figures are visual representations of given knowledge aiming at representing data quickly and in a transparent manner. The use of graphics improves on the human visual. Also, information figures have been there for a long time, and modernization has made it easy for a large group of people to access. Infographics are used as maps and as in tools such as newspapers to show the meteorological conditions. The modern route maps use information figures as a process of integrating information.
Information data use simple tools such as graph papers, markers, pens and pencils by the growth in technology has led to the use of computer software to draw and print the imageries. The diagrams are drawn using software and done manually by the illustrators. Additionally, information figures are being integrated into the journalism field for news that requires scripts and images.
Businesses too are organizing information picture with the aim of attracting more customers, marketing and educating them on what the business entails. Religious institutions such as churches use the educational data to aid in preaching the gospel. Lastly, the education figures in schools encourage learning and lead to fundamental and better understandings of subjects especially in the technical institutions such as the engineering schools, carpentry schools, and tailoring schools.
Moreover, some of the most renowned graphic figures are the maps of the Washington Metro and London Underground. Additionally, the three most important parts of an information number are the content, the visual consisting of colors and graphics and the knowledge. The report figures are classified into two the theme graphics which included the visual data representation and reference items which are rarely found in infographics are used to highlight specific information.
Picture books and narrative are a combination of visual and oral narratives directed for children with simple primary languages aimed at developing their reading skills. The images include oil paints, pencils arts, and watercolors. Some of the famous picture books include the 1902 Beatrix Potter’s Tale of Peter Rabbit, Robert McCloskey’s book known as Make Way for Ducklings and The Cat in the Hat by Dr.Seuss. Picture books are first read to children by adults, and then children read the books for themselves. Narrative illustrations use images as a way of storytelling with comics as the best-known stories with kids as the target audience. Comics can be drawn from newspapers or magazines.
Likewise, Fantasy and game illustrations is another type of painting which targets both the children and the adults. Fantasy is part of the conceptual art that uses digital technology, 3D and 2D pictures and special software. They include animations, webcomics, and films. Due to the industrial revolution, there is a mix of words and pictures aimed at conveying certain information to the target audience or the viewers. Nonrealistic events are portrayed in the fantasy art and themes as they also create hallucinations. Since the past, Images used in creating fiction are important in symbolism, mannerism, and surrealism. Some of the former children illustrations include the Tale of Peter Rabbit and the Tale of Two Bad Mouse.
Commercial pictures are mainly used for advertising. Also, visual images are used as a way of attracting the target audience, drawing their attention and persuading the potential customers, and this helps in promoting a given product or service by making it stand out of the crowded markets. Visual images are critical in drawing the attention to the audience Themes used should blend well with the public taste and preference thus the advertisers are advised first to study their target audience putting into consideration the age and gender. However, there should be a limit in the illustrations or text being used to avoid confusing the potential viewers.
The main elements in an advertising illustration include a visual, a background and text that should be done by qualified and well-trained personnel. Moreover, the effectiveness of publicity is boosted by the quality and the quantity of illustrations being used and well-blended advertisement entailing the three most important themes (visual, background and text) deliver a sound and precise information to the viewers. Commercial examples can be done on social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram, newspapers, magazines, websites and televisions.
Media paintings are created through editorial illustrations where the technical and social dynamics team does the editorial publications. Press pictures are designed by ink and print. Newspapers and magazines are the primary examples of printed media painting as they reach and target a larger audience and they are cheaply and readily available. Images are used the reader with the text accompanying it giving the reader an idea of that of what the story is all about. Other media illustrations that are used entail: televisions, blogs, social media sites, and websites.
HISTORY OF ILLUSTRATIONS
The origin of drawings comes from the cave paintings at the Chauvet, Lascaux, and Altamira where the c.30, 000 to 10,000BCE painters used coal and charcoal to illuminate what they came across. The survival of the charcoal drawings was all because of their alien presence. Paintings during the dark ages have since being destroyed while others extinguished except the pictures from Egypt which were discovered in the Pharaoh’s tomb. Early Christian art was illustrated with pictures of holy fathers in religious texts handwritten in Latin ornamented with biblical art and handwritten on animal skins.
The c.750 to 900 book illustrations were demonstrated with imageries of Christian art at the Carolingian Court by Monks and scribed. However, they were sometimes written on purple dyed leaves in either gold or silver ink with the aim of emphasizing the Charlemagne’s links. Charlemagne introduced a new and straightforward reform known as the Caroline Minuscule. The783 Godescalc Evangelistary is the only remaining manuscript containing the Caroline script. Among other Carolingian arts are; tried gospels, Egino Codex, Abbeville gospels, Lorsch Gospels and Godescalc Gospels
Besides, around the c.900 to 1050, Otto emerged 100 years after the death of Charlemagne continuing the book painting tradition. Otto the third showed more interest in Medieval Paintings ordering manuscripts from monasteries rather than the ordinary courts. One of Ottonian art pieces is the Boethius on Arithmetic which is a fifth-century book entailing a lot of golden beautifications. This book illustration has three movements: Gothic, Romanesque, and the courtly International Gothic Style.
Romanesque book illustrations arose from collaborations between Ireland, North England, and Iona. The greatest manuscript in this era is the Benedictional created by the Winchester Bishop for the St. Aethelworld. Rome, Cluny, and Salzburg are the leading centers for Romanesque art. In 1200, reading ability was still not well known and with over 2000 Convents requiring books for their missions and this lead to demands of book illustrations namely: the Gospel of Henry the Lion (1173), the Lambeth Bible (1150), VitaMathildis Of Donizo (1115) and the St Albans Psalter (1120 to 1130).
Gothic and international Gothic illustrations prevailed between the c.1200 to 1450 with an impeccable mark by naturalism. France is one of the countries that evidently show the use of medieval manuscripts, especially in the French Loyal Courts whereas in England this illustration appreciated in the Amesbury Psalter. Also, International Gothic art was mainly used in European royal courts for instance by Charles IV the Holy Roman Emperor. Furthermore, two religious artworks produced were the: a book for Chancellor Jan of Streada in 1360 and Charles` son Wenceslas Bible. The most legendary international illustrations entail: the Brussels Hours of the Belgium National Library and the Hours of the Maracheal de Boucicaut by Jean Fouquet and Jacquemart.
Also, pictures from the German Renaissance prevailed between c.1430 to 1580 compromising the use of repetitive press impressions and modern paintings which used metals. Johannes Gutenberg the German printer influenced existing printmakers in the German renaissance like Albrecht Altdorfer. Albrecht artworks included the woodcuts and guidelines on evaluating using compasses and rulers. The 18th-century illustrations were heightened by the use of newspapers whose pages laid a perfect juncture for the woodcut illustrations. Besides, the 18th-century illustrators include Jean-Honore Fragonard, Francois Boucher, Henry Fuseli, William Broke and William Hogarth.
Further, the 19th-century illustrations gave an improvement to the newspaper companies with a newspaper like The Times rapidly growing from 5,000 to 15,000 daily distributions. Moreover, due to the enhancement in the printing technology more magazines were launched and produced. Some of the illustrations in this era include the Pilgrimage by Douglas and the John Tenniel’s illustrations. The 18th-century color illustrations have been significantly used by Alois Aluer who was a natural painter which was heightened by the improved printing technology and lithography.
The most prominent 19th century English illustrators are John Martin (the romantic visionary artist) who produced landscape pictures in the form of book illustrations, Samuel Palmer, Edward Lear and-and Hablot Knight Browne the engraver. In America, the civil war outbreak led to the production of portraits of politicians and militants and newspapers such as the Harpe`s Weekly.
The American 20th century illustration entails a full-color painting because of the introduction of the printing technology, and the World War 1 led to aim increased demand of billboards, picture and posters with illustrators like Harvey Dunn, Wallace Morgan, Jack Duncan, Ernest Peixoto and Harry Townsend. After the post-war, there was an increased demand for commercial images for advertising and publications. Besides, some new publications emerged such as the American Magazine, Saturday Evening Post, Vogue, Woman’s Home Companion, Outing, All-Story Magazine and The Delineator.
The depression and recession period in the 1930s led to the retrenchment of many publishers and locked down of publications. However, handwritten pictures were replaced by photography, and there is an emergence of computerized approaches on editing and image formations like Adobe and Photoshop. Illustration has changed over the past years due to the adoption and implementation of the computer systems.