Happy 120th Birthday, Gustaf Tenggren!

Today, November 3rd, 1896, Gustaf Tenggren was born.
His parents Aron and Augusta Tenggren lived along with Aron's father Johan Teng in a small cottage in the parish of Magra, situated in the West of Sweden. Already in the house were four older sisters, but Gustaf was actually the sixth in order; his older brother Sigurd died from diphteria just a year after Gustaf's birth.
In 1898 the family moved to Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg, where Gustaf grew up. In 1910, being only 14 years old he was accepted at an art school, spending six years studying art while continuously painting portraits and illustrations.

Gustaf Tenggren at 20 years a hundred years ago, while visiting
Copenhagen in 1916 along with some fellow students. 

After living for a year in Copenhagen he and his wife, Anna, left for USA in summer of 1920. Gustaf would soon gain a reputation as a skilled and productive artist and illustrator, competing with the cream of the commercial artists. His fame led to his employment by the Disney Studio 1936-1939 where he took part in a number of productions of iconic animated films, such as Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia and Bambi, along with a row of short films, many of which received Oscar awards.

Gustaf Tenggren app. 1960 in his home at Dogfish Head, Southport Island, Maine.
The house is furnished with Swedish antiques. 

When he died on April 6th, 1970, he had illustrated 50 books in USA. One of them, The Poky Little Puppy, was by the turn of the Millennium 2000 the most printed illustrated children's book in the USA ever.