Philip Kappel (1901–1981) was born in Hartford, Connecticut and graduated from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, in 1924. Three years later he was admitted into Who's Who in America, the youngest individual ever listed. For many years he was employed as an artist by the major steamship lines in the United States, such as the Columbia Line, American Export Lines and the Cuba Mail Line. His artwork became a record of ships and men who sailed them.
His technique showed the hand of an illustrator's pen and ink; at other times he used combinations of light and dark, forming silhouettes. He was the author of several books combining observations and illustrations from his world travels, including Boothbay Harbor-A Portfolio of Sketches 1924, Louisiana Gallery 1950, Jamaica Gallery 1960, and New England Gallery 1966.
Kappel's work is held in numerous public collections in the United States, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, National Museum of American Art, Library of Congress, Cleveland Museum of Art, Essex Peabody Museum and Carnegie Institute.
