Lankes, His Woodcut Bookplates

by Wilbur Macey Stone, Illustrated by J. J. Lankes

Julius John Lankes was born in Buffalo, New York in 1884, and became a prolific woodcut print artist, as well as an author and professor. As a child, he enjoyed working with the scraps of wood his father brought home from the lumber mill where he was employed. Lankes had a lifelong interest in art. He first worked in drafting after graduating from Buffalo Commercial and Electro-Mechanical Institute, but then attended art school.

Lankes was a prolific artist. It is estimated he produced over 1,000 woodcut prints. He worked on many, varied projects, including from a historically important collection of Pennsylvania Dutch barns, graphics in The Liberator, and illustrations to accompany works by Beatrix Potter, Robert Frost and others. In addition to A Woodcut Manual, Lankes enjoyed a long teaching career that ultimately led him to being elected to the National Academy of Design.