American Sign Museum
2515 Essex Place
Cincinnati, Ohio 45206
(800) 925-1110, ext. 336
(513) 258-4020
Fax: (513) 744-6936
E-mail: tod@signmuseum.org
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In Memoriam: Eric Christian Matthews
From Signs of the Times magazine; October, 1977 issue, pp. 98-99
Eric Christian Matthews, author of 28 books,
most of them relevant to the sign industry, passed away on July 9, in
a nursing home near St. Louis, MO. Mr. Matthews had been hospitalized
for the past five years after sustaining incapacitating injuries in a
fire at his home in January, 1972. He was 84.
During the more than 50 years Mr. Matthews was associated with the industry, he authored books on
cartooning, commercial art, illustrating, landscape painting and numerous
other subjects. Mr. Matthews was also known for his innovations in sign
painting technique, including demonstration of a simplified method for
working with gold leaf and other signs on glass. In addition, he pioneered
the lacquer system, beginning in 1926. (Some of his articles on the subject
were published by ST from July 1930 through July 1931.)
Mr. Matthews began what was to become a varied career in 1912, after
leaving his father's ranch and a promising future in rodeos behind him.
He lettered his first trucks that first year and the interest and talent
displayed eventually led to a formal art school education four years later.
In the spring of 1920, he found employment with a large auto painting
company lettering trucks, the same year his first book, How to Paint
Signs and Sho' Cards was published. Twenty years and many editions
later, the book still remained on the market.
Other notable books written by Mr. Matthews include: Commercial Art
and Cartooning, Modern Show Card Lettering, Quick Landscape
Painting in Oils, and How to Draw Funny Pictures.
Surviving relatives of Mr. Matthews include: two brothers, Adin E. Matthews
and Hugh H. Matthews; two sisters: Ruth Plummer and Lucille Ellis; a son,
Howard; a daughter, Alice Hanson; three grandchildren and five great grandchildren.
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