Robinson (artist)

Robinson is the pen name of a German illustrator, Werner Kruse, who in 1967 produced a book of ink drawings that show New York City's skyline and neighborhoods in intense detail. He described it as "an X-ray" style that showed the city's buildings from outside and inside.^[1]

The book, originally called "New York," was reissued in 2009 as "New York, Line by Line: From Broadway to the Battery." A review in New York magazine described the drawings as "scrupulously accurate, down to the tiny tripartite cornices on the brownstones." ^[2]

Born in Berlin in 1910 and taking his name from the children's story "Robinson Crusoe," Robinson also made similar books about Paris, Berlin and Tokyo. He died in 1994.^[3]

References

1. Robert Birnbaum, "The Morning News," Oct. 5, 2009
2. "New York," Oct. 18, 2009
3. Entry at the German National Library