Barbara Shermund

Barbara Shermund (June 26, 1899 – September 9, 1978) was an American cartoonist whose work appeared in The New Yorker from its first year in 1925. She was one of the first three women cartoonists inducted into the National Cartoonists Society in 1950.

Early life and education Barbara Shermund was born in San Francisco on June 26, 1899. Her father, Henry Shermund, was an architect and her mother, Fredda Cool, was a sculptor. Shermund's talent emerged very early in her life and her parents encouraged her to follow her passion. She attended the California School of Fine Arts and studied painting and printmaking. Her first artwork was published when she was nine years old on the San Francisco Chronicles children's page under the title 'On the farm'. In 1911, she published a short story for a writing contest in The San Francisco Call. and in October and she became a frequent contributor. Over 600 of her cartoons were published in The New Yorker Shermund wrote her own captions under her cartoons. Her creations were satirical and often had a feminist and poignant tone reflecting the early 20th century view of the New Woman. One cartoon showed two men seated by a fire with the caption, "Well, I guess women are just human beings after all." Shermund also contributed to magazines like Life, Colliers, Judge, and many others. Shermund continued to draw at her home in Sea Bright, New Jersey, until shortly before her death. In 2022, the New York Times published a belated obituary for Shermund. The Brandywine Conservancy and Museum of Art, Chadds Ford, PA, had a show of her works from February 15, 2025 - June 1, 2025.

Shermund was first mentioned in Judith Lee's book, "Defining New Yorker Humor." She is profiled in Liza Donnelly's history, "Funny Ladies: The New Yorker's Women Cartoonists and Their Cartoons," published in 2005, and in Donnelly's subsequent edition, "Very Funny Ladies." Donnelly wrote a profile of Shermund for The New Yorker magazine in 2019.