1933 Jo Mora Evolution of the Cowboy Life Rodeo Poster [First Edition]

Cowboy Culture, by a cowboy.

The legendarily rare 1933 first edition of Jo Mora's 'Evolution of the Cowboy' is considered his most iconic and influential work. The image celebrates all things cowboy, from the rodeo to saddles, steers, and chuckwagons. It is worth noting that Mora became a cowboy himself, and his depictions of cowboy life, the Salinas Rodeo, and the surrounding culture exhibit realism grounded in experience.

A Closer Look

This vibrant poster offers a visual exploration of the history and culture of the North American cowboy. At its heart is a lively rodeo scene, rendered in Mora's cartoon style, surrounded by more naturalistic depictions of cowboys from various regions and periods. These vignettes highlight riding and roping techniques and cowboy gear, including saddles, stirrups, and spurs, each accompanied by descriptions. A frieze across the top traces the cowboy's evolution from 16th-century Spanish conquistadors to contemporary ranch hands. Overseeing the scene is the 'Sweetheart of the Rodeo,' enclosed in a heart-shaped frame (this part of the image was later reused as the cover art for The Byrds' 1968 album of that title).

Mora drew this map to promote the Salinas Rodeo, in which he actively participated. According to Gillmore,

In 1933, Dan Madeira, President of the Salinas Rodeo, helped sell his 'California Rodeo Map' publicity idea to the board of directors of the Salinas Rodeo. Thus was born the most popular of all Jo's cartes.

Mora the Cowboy

Mora had a lifelong interest in cowboys and even became one himself. According to the Quarterly Bulletin of the Monterey History and Art Association devoted to Mora's life and works:

Fascinated by the Texas cowboys and the California vaqueros, sharing their Hispanic roots, and aware that they, too, were an imperiled species, the young Jo Mora succeeded in becoming one of them. His acute observation of their way of life subsequently enabled him to replicate cowboy costumes, techniques, and equipment with unrivaled accuracy - whether in sculpture, two-dimensional works on paper, or in the greatly admired books he wrote towards the end of his life, Trail Dust and Saddle Leather [1946] and Californios: The Saga of the Hard-Riding Vaqueros, America's First Cowboys [1949].

Publication History and Census

This image was produced by Jo Mora in 1933 to promote the Salinas Rodeo. This present example is the supremely rare first edition, in which the scene to either side of the 'Sweetheart of the Rodeo' features maps of Monterey County, the United States, and the Salinas Rodeo Complex. In later editions, this was changed to silhouettes of cowboys on horseback and a chuckwagon. Editions breakdown as follows

• 1933: First edition, as offered here.
• 1933: Second edition, first with chuckwagon imagry.
• 1939: Reissue of 2nd edition
• 1941: Reissue of 2nd edition.
• 1948: Reissue of 2nd edition.
• 1952: Reissue of 2nd edition.
• 1960: Commercial issue produced for Levi Strauss and Company as 'Levi's Round-up of Cowboy Lore.'
• 1970: Commercial issue produced for Levi Strauss and Company as 'Levi's Round-up of Cowboy Lore.'
• 1989: Commercial issue produced for the California Beef Council.
• 1993: Reprinted by Jim Meyer Graphics.
• 1999: Second reprint by Jim Meyer Graphics.

We see the first edition only in the David Rumsey collection. His example is curiously missing the red layer; it is not clear what this discrepancy means, but there are variants in the second edition that also lack the red layer.

Cartographer

Joseph 'Jo' Jancito Mora (October 22, 1876 – October 10, 1947) was an Uruguayan born artist active in California during the first half of the 20th century. Mora immigrated to California as a young man. He studied art in Boston and, after graduating, worked there briefly before relocating to California. In cartographic circles Mora is known for pioneering the 20th century pictorial map. In a series he referred to as his 'cartes,' published between in 1926 and 1942, Mora developed a pictorial style that combined cartography with colorful cartoonish image of local figures, folklore, history, and natural wonders. His earliest maps were commissioned by the Hotel Del Monte and included California's Playground and The Seventeen Mile Drive. As he matured as a cartographer, his work became increasingly dense, often packed with tiny figures, each expressive of some aspect of regional life. Mora, often called the 'Renaissance man of the West' also worked as an illustrator, muralist, sculptor, photographer, and writer. His masterpiece is considered to be the Father Serra Cenotaph, a bronze and marble sculpture at the Memorial Chapel in El Carmelo Mission, Carmel, California. His map work included Monterey Penninsula (1927), and Seventeen Mile Drive (1927), California (1927), Grand Canyon (1931), Yosemite (1931), Yellowstone (1936), Carmel-By-The-Sea (1942), California (1945) (large and small versions), Map of Los Angeles (1942), among others.   Further Details...

Condition

Very good. Some creasing and surface abrasion. Laid down on archival tissue. Even toning. Repairs lower right, lower left, upper left corners.

References

Gilmore, J., Jo Mora's Cartes and Maps, #M10. Rumsey 8651.000. Grandeau, P. A., and Short, D. J., Jo Morea: Cartes, #6a.