Illustrations
While primarily a landscape painter for much of his career, in lean times Ahrens turned to illustrative work for various magazines and newspapers to keep food on the table. Below are some examples of his craft.
Featured Art
This sketch was an illustration for a poem called "An Old Tune" by Laura Skaats Cunningham in a late 1907 issue of Sunset Magazine, published in San Francisco, CA.
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson.
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson.
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson. His daughter, Polly, would have been the right age to be the model for child.
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including this one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson.
This painting, called Hailing the Camp, was commissioned by Outing Magazine in 1900.
This illustration appeared on the cover of the December 1907 issue of The Home Journal, published by the Canadian Woman's Magazine, Toronto, Canada.
This illustration is from a story within the December 1907 issue of Home Journal (Toronto.)
This illustration was featured on the last page of the July 1908 issue of The Canadian Magazine.
This illustration is from a story in the December 1907 issue of Home Journal (Toronto).
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson.
This illustration was from the 1899 Christmas magazine for Saturday Night, a Toronto paper. Carl illustrated three stories in this issue, including one by his friend, poet and recitalist Pauline Johnson. It is possible that he used his first wife, Emily, as a model for the woman.