Visit to London - part 2

My daughter absolutely loves The Science Museum, so it was a must-do on our London city itinerary and we wanted to get there before the school rush. I loved this fascinating optical sculpture

 and the accompanying photo by Berenice Abbott which inspired it's re-creation.

My daughter's hoodie had a galaxy pattern, so we attempted to envisage the infinite!

After an early lunch, we headed to the Victoria and Albert Museum. So much to see there! The Chihuly chandelier at the entrance signifies the start of the afternoon of exploration.

I didn't remember seeing this huge Burne-Jones painting on previous visits, so perhaps I had never been in this stairwell before? The V&A is a large museum, it is easy enough to get (happily) lost!

I was excited to see an advert about a Winnie-ther-Pooh exhibition, then disappointed when the dates didn't coincide with my trip to London. So when I came across the hallway of original illustrations, including several by EH Shepard I was quite delighted.

I thought I recognised the work of Edmund Dulac, one of my favourite golden age illustrators but I was wrong. This 1911 watercolour of King Mark and La Belle Isoud from Malory's Morte D'Arthur is by William  Russell Flint.

There was a Dulac nearby, however. It is difficult to take pictures of these illustrations, because they are behind glass, but the image is from Hans Christian Anderson's The Snow Queen. The snow queen's carriage is brightening the left of the picture.

I was curious about this illustration by John Everett Millais. I have recently seen the film Effie Gray, who romantically became his wife after an unconsummated first marriage to John Ruskin.

There was a whole section of the museum devoted to performance and theatre which was delightful, and again, a section I had not explored on previous visits. This circus poster is (most obviously!) the inspiration for The Beatles' song Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite.

There is so much to see at the V&A that repeated visits are a must. Exit through the gift shop is always interesting...A plethora of ceramic buttons caught my attention.

Illustration and Books

While in Dublin last week, I couldn't resist this book of Fairy Tales illustrated beautifully by Harry Clarke. It was only when I moved to Ireland 20 years ago that I realised Clarke was an Irish artist, although I was familiar with his illustrations since childhood and had seen the gorgeous stained glass windows at the Hugh Lane Gallery on previous visits to Dublin. 

Reading the introduction to this book, I found out it was a re-print publication with all new photos of the illustrations as one of the original books was now in the possession of the National Gallery of Ireland. The original book can be viewed in the prints & drawings section of the gallery by appointment only, and I plan to do it!

Another colour plate from the book:

Illustration from its Golden Age (i.e., 19th & early 20th century) has been a life-long interest of mine (and I think most of my sisters too). My favourite illustrator is usually Edmund Dulac and The Poetical Works of Edgar Allan Poe illustrated by Dulac is still one of my prized possessions. Though the image below is not from that book, it gives a sense of Dulac's style. I used to have this picture hanging on my wall when I was growing up.

Speaking of sisters, my sister Yvonne Whelan, recently had an exhibition of her illustrations ("I Saw Wonderland") at Yumart in Toronto. The image  below is Sleeping Beauty.

Aubrey Beardsley was another favourite, though I bemoan the sale of several of his books when I left Canada, including a deluxe copy of Morte d'Arthur. Why oh why?

At least I kept my copy of the Romance of King Arthur illustrated by Arthur Rackham which I had bought on my second visit to New York in 1981. This Rackham illustration was another picture I had on my bedroom wall when I was younger.

Another book which I bemoan selling is The Rime of the Ancient Mariner illustrated by Gustave Doré. But I still remember the fabulous illustrations!