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The Illustrated Courtroom: 50 Years of Court Art
A Times Literary Supplement picks Illustrated Courtroom as a Book of the Year 2014. Named to Kirkus Reviews' Best Books of 2014.
The first collection displaying the work of five of the most celebrated courtroom artists of all: Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny, Bill Robles, Richard Tomlinson and Elizabeth Williams. Award-winning crime journalist and author Sue Russell wrote the text.
Trials included range from Jack Ruby (who killed JFK's assassin Lee Harvey Oswald) to the Black Panthers to Charles Manson (on the front cover, lunging at the judge as a bailiff tackles him) to Michael Jackson to O.J. Simpson to Martha Stewart to Bernie Madoff.
These iconic illustrations — originally done for newspapers and television in courtrooms where cameras were not allowed — showcase this unique meeting of art and journalism. These are works of art, but they are also news—the images imprinted on the public’s mind from some of the biggest
headlines of the era, as revisited in these pages by writer Sue Russell.
The first collection displaying the work of five of the most celebrated courtroom artists of all: Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny, Bill Robles, Richard Tomlinson and Elizabeth Williams. Award-winning crime journalist and author Sue Russell wrote the text.
Trials included range from Jack Ruby (who killed JFK's assassin Lee Harvey Oswald) to the Black Panthers to Charles Manson (on the front cover, lunging at the judge as a bailiff tackles him) to Michael Jackson to O.J. Simpson to Martha Stewart to Bernie Madoff.
These iconic illustrations — originally done for newspapers and television in courtrooms where cameras were not allowed — showcase this unique meeting of art and journalism. These are works of art, but they are also news—the images imprinted on the public’s mind from some of the biggest
headlines of the era, as revisited in these pages by writer Sue Russell.
248 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2014
2 people are currently reading
375 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Williams
2 booksElizabeth Williams' artwork has been published on the front pages of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Post and Newsday. She has worked for numerous news organizations on both coasts, including CBS, NBC and ABC News, Associated Press, CNBC and Bloomberg News, drawing trials of the famous and infamous including: The Times Square Bomber, Bernard Madoff, Martha Stewart, John Gotti, Robert Chambers, John Gotti and John DeLorean. . Her work has been exhibited in juried shows at the Society of Illustrators in N.Y. and L.A., The New York City Police Museum, John Jay School of Criminal Justice, N.Y., New Jersey’s William Brennan Courthouse and Conejo Art Museum, CA.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 16, 2014
I've always marveled at the skill and talent of courtroom artists--the speed at which they must work, the emotion they must convey, even the challenge of creating a sense of place. This book is an fascinating deep dive into the work of five courtroom artists: Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny, Bill Robles, Richard Tomlinson (my personal favorite), and Elizabeth Williams, who compiled the collection. Here are pages and pages of some of the finest examples of courtroom art from many of the nation's most infamous trials: Jack Ruby; Jerry Sandusky; Charles Manson; Syndney Biddle Barrows; the Black Panthers; and many many others. The accompanying text weaves together the story of the crimes and trials with the experiences of the artists capturing them. As more and more courts allow cameras, this art form is becoming obsolete, which makes me sad. I am grateful to Williams and Russell for this beautifully curated collection and insightful narration.
“Charles Manson fixed his gaze on a juror who looked jittery, on a seasoned reporter who turned away, and finally on me. His eyes wavered. Not mine. It was my profession to stare.” — (courtroom artist) Howard Brodie
“Charles Manson fixed his gaze on a juror who looked jittery, on a seasoned reporter who turned away, and finally on me. His eyes wavered. Not mine. It was my profession to stare.” — (courtroom artist) Howard Brodie
January 26, 2023
Co-authors and artists Elizabeth Williams and Sue Russell have gathered artwork from within a most unusual setting – the American courtroom and present said artwork in their book, The Illustrated Courtroom: 50+ Years of Court Art.
Williams, Russell and court artists Bill Robles, Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny and Richard Tomlinson, have worked within intense, highly structured boundaries, accomplishing what for the most part the camera is not invited to do. Their hand-drawn works in black and white or vibrant, realistic color, tell more than mere words can convey. The opening chapter cites some of the most “Famous Faces” seen in the restricted world of official judgment: Mick Jagger, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, and a keenly envisaged young Donald Trump, testifying in a case involving the National Football League. Williams’ portrait of the wide-eyed future president gives support for her observation of him as someone who “didn’t mind being drawn.” The sensational trial of Charles Manson, enhanced by Robles’ on-the-scene works, include the rather charming faces of the young women whom Manson – posing as a modern messiah - inveigled into savagely murdering seven people including an unborn child.
Sometimes courtroom drawings must be made quickly, as when Manson leapt up to attack the presiding judge, or when the aforementioned young women appeared in court one day with shaved heads in imitation of their murderous guru. Emotions, or lack of them, are captured by the skilled sketching: the faces of the accused, such as that of Jack Ruby, who murdered the murderer of President Kennedy, waiting tremulously for the jury’s verdict; the visages of family of those killed or tormented, fraught with feeling; and the professional stance of attorneys and judges presenting and weighing the mountains of evidence presented in each stirring scenario.
Entwining the artists’ sketches with some of the most famous cases seen in press and television in the past fifty years, Williams and Russell reveal a unique realm of jurisprudence that most readers will not have known about heretofore. They explore the courtroom as a “stage” where practiced professionals and alleged criminals obey, or sometimes skew, legal stipulations, hoping for findings in their favor. On site, in haste, under great pressure but with notable care and expertise, the illustrators cited have devised lasting impressions of defendants, jurors, family and prosecutors as they speak and act in a context in which the result can be a life-or-death matter. This is a large book offering highly readable, engagingly visual material for readers across a wide spectrum of interests.
Quill says: This dynamic, brilliantly illustrated treatment by artists/authors Williams and Russell satisfies the eye and opens the mind, offering new perspectives on courtroom drama and legal complexities both behind the scenes and within the headlines.
Williams, Russell and court artists Bill Robles, Howard Brodie, Aggie Kenny and Richard Tomlinson, have worked within intense, highly structured boundaries, accomplishing what for the most part the camera is not invited to do. Their hand-drawn works in black and white or vibrant, realistic color, tell more than mere words can convey. The opening chapter cites some of the most “Famous Faces” seen in the restricted world of official judgment: Mick Jagger, Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, and a keenly envisaged young Donald Trump, testifying in a case involving the National Football League. Williams’ portrait of the wide-eyed future president gives support for her observation of him as someone who “didn’t mind being drawn.” The sensational trial of Charles Manson, enhanced by Robles’ on-the-scene works, include the rather charming faces of the young women whom Manson – posing as a modern messiah - inveigled into savagely murdering seven people including an unborn child.
Sometimes courtroom drawings must be made quickly, as when Manson leapt up to attack the presiding judge, or when the aforementioned young women appeared in court one day with shaved heads in imitation of their murderous guru. Emotions, or lack of them, are captured by the skilled sketching: the faces of the accused, such as that of Jack Ruby, who murdered the murderer of President Kennedy, waiting tremulously for the jury’s verdict; the visages of family of those killed or tormented, fraught with feeling; and the professional stance of attorneys and judges presenting and weighing the mountains of evidence presented in each stirring scenario.
Entwining the artists’ sketches with some of the most famous cases seen in press and television in the past fifty years, Williams and Russell reveal a unique realm of jurisprudence that most readers will not have known about heretofore. They explore the courtroom as a “stage” where practiced professionals and alleged criminals obey, or sometimes skew, legal stipulations, hoping for findings in their favor. On site, in haste, under great pressure but with notable care and expertise, the illustrators cited have devised lasting impressions of defendants, jurors, family and prosecutors as they speak and act in a context in which the result can be a life-or-death matter. This is a large book offering highly readable, engagingly visual material for readers across a wide spectrum of interests.
Quill says: This dynamic, brilliantly illustrated treatment by artists/authors Williams and Russell satisfies the eye and opens the mind, offering new perspectives on courtroom drama and legal complexities both behind the scenes and within the headlines.
October 15, 2022
This gorgeously illustrated book reflects the best combination of courtroom art / backstory in one place that I've ever seen. Not only are the courtroom sketches hauntingly evocative, but the book has something special to recommend it - acclaimed true crime author Sue Russell's fascinating trial commentary to complement the drawings. Combined with the illustrators' recollections of their reactions to the courtroom drama unfolding, this is a book I simply couldn't put down. Exceptionally well done and highly recommended.
September 13, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this illustrated book about the art behind some of the most famous trials in American history. As someone who is fascinated by courtroom artists and the work they are called to do, I found this book highly informative. It answered so many questions I've had about the industry and the process.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews