Life and Career

A native of Pretty Prairie, Kansas and a son of an Air Force pilot, Jack Unruh (1935-2016) lived in a variety of places while growing up. Jack was like all kids... he drew... he just never stopped. When he was little, he made picture stories about the war while lying in front of the radio, drawing what he heard. After graduating from Washington University in St Louis, he settled and began his illustration career in Dallas, Texas, where his one-of-a-kind drawing style emerged.

With his unabashed love of drawing, Jack was quick to say that his passion for image-making ran parallel to his love of the outdoors and, of course, fly fishing and bird hunting. It takes only a few moments of wandering through his portfolio to notice the affection he had for drawing nature and its inhabitants.

Through his easy laugh, Jack would say, "Drawing is a magic wand!" He made enchanting, spellbinding images for more than 50 years.

Unruh appeared in the Communication Arts illustration annual since its inception and was in numerous shows of American Illustration, Graphis, AIGA and Print magazine. Graphis featured an article, "Jack Unruh, Quick on the Draw." in its 2002 Sept/Oct issue 341.

Unruh is listed in the New York Society of Illustrators' Hall of Fame—a hallowed fraternity of master pictorial storytellers—along with such legendaries as Norman Rockwell, Al Hirschfeld, Dean Cornwell, Maxfield Parrish, Al Parker, N.C. Wyeth and Robert Weaver.

RETROSPECTIVE
If you missed the Jack Unruh Retrospective on June 26, 2016 you can watch it on YouTube.

CLIENTS
Publications: Rolling Stone, Time, Sports Illustrated, New York Magazine, National Geographic, Field and Stream, GQ, Texas Monthly, and more.
Annual Reports: Borg Warner, Halliburton, Brinker International, Herman Miller, Sony, Hartford Financial Services, Entergy, and more.
Advertising: IBM, Citicorp, Exxon/Mobil, Budweiser, American Airlines, Leatherman Tools, The Bronx Zoo, Kendall Jackson, and more.

AWARDS
Gold and Silver Medals - New York Society of Illustrators
1969 Art Director of the Year - Dallas Art Directors Club
1977 Golden Egg Award - Dallas Society of Visual Communications
1988 Distinguished Alumni Award - Washington University
1998 Hamilton King Award - New York Society of Illustrators
2006 Illustrators Hall of Fame Induction - New York Society of Illustrators
2011 Coveted Ralph Award - Creative Summit, Texas State University - Read About Award
2016 Gold Award in Graphis Design Annual 2017 for Jack's journal - Read About Award
2016 Texas Book Festival Honorary Artist - Read About Award

BOOKS
FISH & Other Stories as My Pen Remembers Them a journal by Jack Unruh - Herring Press
The Texanist: Fine Advice on Living in Texas by David Courtney and Jack Unruh - University of Texas Press
The Nature of Fly-Fishing - Thunder Bay, Distributed by Abbeville Press
Streamside Reflections - Thunder Bay, Distributed by Abbeville Press
Bass Fishing - An American Tradition - Thunder Bay, Distributed by Abbeville Press
Deep Sea Fishing - Thunder Bay, Distributed by Abbeville Press
The Sportsman Guide to Texas - Taylor Publishing
Art of Birds by Pablo Neruda - University of Texas Press
The Killdeer Crying: Selected Poems by William Barney - Prickly Pear Press
If You Didn’t Bring Jerky, What Did I Just Eat? by Bill Heavey - Grove/Atlantic
It’s Only Slow Food Until You Try To Eat It by Bill Heavey - Grove/Atlantic
You’re Not Lost If You Can Still See The Truck by Bill Heavey - Grove/Atlantic
The Devil’s Backbone by Bill Wittliff - University of Texas Press
Life's Little Lessons by Roo, More Than Just a Dachshund by Richard Lentz - HIS Publishing

UNRUH ART ARCHIVE - WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY in ST. LOUIS Jack Unruh’s archive is part of the Dowd Illustration Research Archive (DIRA) at Washington University in St. Louis. DIRA collects original art and printed material from many fields of popular American visual culture. DIRA began with the donation of the archives of the distinguished illustrator and alumnus of Washington University, Al Parker. 

Parker was the first in a long line of successful illustrators that attended Washington University, including Bernie Fuchs who graduated in 1954. As a young man, Unruh was impressed with Fuchs' work and said it was the reason he decided to attend Washington University.

The Jack Unruh Collection includes a variety of archival materials and artifacts including sketches, original artwork from books, magazines and advertising, posters, tear sheets, reference photos, scrapbooks, and transparencies. The collection has been organized, preserved, described, and made accessible to researchers and admirers of Unruh’s work.  Of the over 40 linear feet of Unruh’s materials, approximately 1,000 images have been digitized and made available in high resolution online. These materials are used by a variety of researchers including faculty and students at Washington University and from other institutions, as well as scholars and historians.  

 Link to the research: https://aspace.wustl.edu/repositories/3/resources/344 

The Library’s website: https://library.wustl.edu/collecting-area/mghl/