Happy Birthday to Uncle
1948
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
lithograph
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Rosenwald Collection
Accession Number
1980.45.124
Art Historical Context
Created in 1948, Alfred Bendiner’s lithograph “Happy Birthday to Uncle” captures a lighthearted, personal moment through the versatile medium of printmaking. Lithography, which rose to prominence in the nineteenth century and remained popular among twentieth-century artists, allows for rich tonal variation and fluid line work while enabling multiple impressions. This accessibility made the technique ideal for reaching broader audiences beyond gallery walls. As part of the National Gallery of Art’s Rosenwald Collection, the print reflects the mid-century interest in works on paper that blend e...
About the Artist
Alfred Bendiner
Alfred Bendiner (July 23, 1899 – March 19, 1964) was a Philadelphia-based architect, artist, caricaturist, and writer whose career demonstrated a rare synthesis of technical precision and wit. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Hungarian immigrant parents, Bendiner moved with his family to Philadelphia, where he attended the Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Arts before serving in the mil...