"Cat Squabbles" By Harris ("MAN" magazine, Nicosia, December 2002 issue)

 

Here is another one for the end of the year! I was looking through my - very old - portfolio the other day and I came across the series of comic strips I used to produce for this monthly magazine in Cyprus, 11-12 years ago. The subject, being seasonal (families, in-laws, booze and Christmas trees) should be fairly uplifting... Happy New Year to all!

"The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book" Assembled By Iona And Peter Opie, Additional Illustrations By Joan Hassall (Oxford University Press, London 1963 - first published in 1955), Part - 3

 

The vast collection of wood engravings in this book comes mainly from chapbooks and toy books dating from the 18th and early 19th centuries. Some, are the work of Thomas Bewick (1753-1828), a renowned artist from the North-East of England ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Bewick ) who at that time was at the peak of his career.

When this edition was produced in the fifties, Joan Hassall, R.E. (at the time considered to be one of the best wood engravers working in Britain) was brought in to create new work for the rhymes that had no existing illustrations. Her collaboration on this project lasted for two years but, unfortunately, she was not credited on the specific pieces she created so it is not possible for us to tell which is her artwork! For example, on the "Old Mother Hubbard" rhyme, below, there were three missing engravings which she had to re-create in order to complete all nine verses. Her engraving skills and talent were of such high standard that they look like they were made some two hundred years earlier! Here is the biography of Joan Hassall (1906-1988) on Wikipedia:

 

 

 

 

 

 

"The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book" Assembled By Iona And Peter Opie, Additional Illustrations By Joan Hassall (Oxford University Press, London 1963 - first published in 1955), Part - 2

 

And now we know what happened after Jack and Jill fell down the hill...Beautiful and amusing woodcuts illustrating these ever popular nursery rhymes in this 1950's collection. The smacking of Jill would not have been allowed nowadays of course, as the Social Services would intervene and take her away!!

 

 

"The Oxford Nursery Rhyme Book" Assembled By Iona And Peter Opie, Additional Illustrations By Joan Hassall (Oxford University Press, London 1963 - first published in 1955)

 

 

 

"2013 Christmas Card" By Harris

 

By the way, this is the drawing for my Christmas cards design this year. I was unusually organised this year, finished it early, and managed to get all cards printed and sent in time! All comments are welcomed...

"Through The Garden Gate" by Susan Hill, illustrated by Angela Barrett (published by Hamish Hamilton Ltd, London 1986) Part 4

 

One more from the large selection of majestic illustrations in this book. The serenity and dreamlike quality of Angela Barrett's pictures remind me of work by the Symbolists and the Pre-Raphaelites from the late 19th century. And, of course, there's a strong element of surrealism in the strange garden landscapes, secret doorways, tall hedges, quirky objects, shadows and half-hidden figures - that are so typical in Magritte's work.

Susan Hill (born 1942, Great Britain) is the author of many other books, including detective novels, ghost stories, memoirs and children's books. Here's a link to her own website:  http://www.susanhill.org.uk/susan_hill_autobiography

"Through The Garden Gate" by Susan Hill, illustrated by Angela Barrett (published by Hamish Hamilton Ltd, London 1986) Part 3

 

Here's an interview of Angela Barrett for "Books For Keeps" an online magazine about books - written by Quentin Blake who also taught her at the Royal College Of Art: http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/issue/131/childrens-books/articles/authorgraph/authorgraph-no131-angela-barrett  It gives the reader a good insight about her work process, ideas and techniques. It also gives more information on her long career as a children's illustrator and references to other books by her.

 

 

"Through The Garden Gate" by Susan Hill, illustrated by Angela Barrett (published by Hamish Hamilton Ltd, London 1986) Part 2

 

Every book illustrated by Angela Barrett is a gem! There is so much patience, effort and talent in each illustration, large or small- and there are dozens in this book. Born in Essex in 1955, she studied illustration at the Royal College of Art. She produced editorial illustrations for publications such as The Sunday Times Magazine, The Observer Magazine, House and Gardens as well as book jackets for various publishers through out the late seventies and eighties. Some of the thirty or so titles she illustrated are: "The King, the Cat and the Fiddle"(1983) by Yehudi Menuhin and Christopher Hope, "Joan Of Arc"(1999) by Josephine Poole, "The Hidden House"(1991) by Martin Waddell - winner of the 1991 W.H. Smith Illustration Award, "Can It Be True?"(1988) by Susan Hill - category winner of the 1988 Nestle Smarties Book Prize, and many more.

 

 

 

 

"Through The Garden Gate" by Susan Hill, illustrated by Angela Barrett (published by Hamish Hamilton Ltd, London 1986)