Ouflook wnrsy»!s*t*r*pa
Willy Pogany’s “Four Fairies on Insects." CHILDHOOD REVISTED
TH ER E ’S a remarkable exhibition at Towneley Hall, Burn ley, at the moment — until roofing contractors move in at the end of the month or the start of the New Year and everything goes back into store.
It’s a selection of some 60
works by illustrators of chil dren’s books, a choice from the hall’s permanent collec tion of 300 which Burnley bought in the late 1920s
CLIVE BARNDEN visits Towneley Hall and finds an exhibition simply oozing with charm
before illustrations became as sought after as they are now. The beauty of the exhibi
tion is that it includes a number of lesser-known artists, as well as famous names like Walter Crane and Kate Greenaway and
therefore typifies the wide- ranging development of illustration work between the 1880s and 1920s. Cheek by jowl with two of
Louis Wain’s famous cats — even postcards of his work now command high prices — are gems by lesser-
known illustrators such as Noel Harold, whose por trayal of three women at sea in a sinking boat, “In Distress,” is typical of the period yet would not look out of place in some chil dren’s novels of today. Similar comments could
also be made of G.M. Bur gess’ charming “At the Helm in Fairyland,” Louis Baumer’s “The Debutante,” and Charles H o r re l l ’s “Bedroom Condifence.” Walter Crane’s “Little Bo
Peep” and Kate Green away’s “Sisters” stand out, as do the four works by Randolph Caldecott and four by Harry Rountree Surprisingly, all the top
name works on display cur rently are but the tip of the iceberg — many of the illus- t r a t io n s in s to r e are unframed and not yet ready for display, although more may be by Easter, by which time the roofing should be complete and the exhibition back in its second-floor home. T h e re ’s a good chance that many illustra tions could go on tour next summer, too. I f you haven’t been to
One of the gems in store o — Kate Greenaway’s “Children on a Fence.”
Towneley before you’ll also be delighted with some of the paintings which are part of the hall’s permanent dis
Walter Crane’s “Little Bo Beep,” a version of page 37 of “The Baby’s Opera,” printed by Edmund Evans in 1877.
play collection. In the main gallery alongside the illus trators’ work are eye-catch- ing paintings like S ir Edward B u rn e - Jo n e s ’ “Wood Nymphs” (in the alarmed area) and a per sonal favourite, Henry Woods’ “A Venetian Chris tening Party.”
There’s yet another rea
son for visiting Towneley before the end of December — this is the first year the hall has put up a Christmas tree and staff have created a period Christmas atmo sphere by displaying cards from the mid to late Vic torian era. □
m
8 ELIZABETH STREET
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50
