Joseph Christian Leyendecker (American, 1874-1951) Treaty for the New Year, The Saturday Evening Post cover, December 30, 1922 Oil on canvas 29 x 21-1/2 inches (73.7 x 54.6 cm) Signed with artist's monogram lower right:: JCL PROVENANCE: Private collection; Weiss Auctions, Lynbrook, New York, November 15, 2017, lot 1075; Private collection, Dallas, acquired from the above. LITERATURE: The Saturday Evening Post, December 30, 1922, cover; W. Reed, Great American Illustrators, New York, 1979, p. 96, illustrated; J. Cohn, Covers of "The Saturday Evening Post:" Seventy Years of Outstanding Illustration from America's Favorite Magazine, New York, 1995, p. 105, illustrated; L.S. Cutler, J.G. Cutler, J.C. Leyendecker: American Imagist, New York, 2008, p. 138, illustrated. Few artists captured the evolving spirit of early twentieth-century America with the elegance and authority of Joseph Christian Leyendecker. Across more than three hundred covers for The Saturday Evening Post, he distilled contemporary life into images at once stylish, legible, and culturally resonant. Among his most enduring contributions is the New Year's Baby, a motif he revisited annually beginning in 1906. In Treaty for the New Year (1922), a diapered infant stands in earnest negotiation with a formally dressed elder, the humorous exchange reflecting the social tensions of the Prohibition era. The man's oversized top hat—long associated with the figure of "Mr. Dry"—serves as a pointed visual shorthand, reinforcing the cultural context while lending the scene its characteristic wit. Rendered with Leyendecker's signature precision—crisp contours, sculptural modeling, and lively hatched brushwork—the composition balances humor and refinement, exemplifying the artist's singular ability to translate national sentiment into an instantly recognizable image. HID12401132022 © 2026 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved www.HA.com/TexasAuctioneerLicenseNotice

Private collection; Weiss Auctions, Lynbrook, New York, November 15, 2017, lot 1075; Private collection, Dallas, acquired from the above.

Condition report available upon request.
Framed Dimensions 32 X 25 Inches