I am in a Stew all about you.
3 1/2" x 4 1/8"
circa 1920s
signed: CS Byrnes
no publisher's marks
The name CS Byrnes can be found on a handful of postcards and shaped, flat valentines, but the person behind the name is a bit of a mystery. Dating to the 1910s or 1920s, these cards feature big cheeked, sad-eyed little cuties. Byrnes worked for greeting card giant, Gibson. The postcard images signed by Byrnes appear to be mainly if not exclusively, published by Gibson. The heart shaped flat shown above has no publisher's marks so it may or may not be a Gibson product.
Aside from this affiliation with Gibson, I have as of yet, found no information to flesh out a fuller image of Byrnes - not even a full name. The Gibson Greeting Card company closed in 2000 after stumbling through a rocky time in 1990s. Its massive headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio was demolished back in 2016 to make way for a project developed by the Cincinnati Port Authority. Surely archives and company history including details of artists and cards of note have been stored somewhere? With an Ohio University library perhaps? Or perhaps you have an inside scoop regarding this named, yet unknown artist, CS Byrnes? Do tell in the comments! (Comments are moderated since we get so much spam, so be patient with us, we will get to it, it just takes a bit sometimes)
