Children's book illustration is a too-often ignored artform. One of the most well-known names in the golden age of illustration is Edmund Dulac, a French illustrator who worked in the early 20th century. Although his images have a very noticeable Victorian aesthetic, Dulac thought outside the box and would set fairytale images in exotic lands. Sometimes he would even imitate the traditional artwork of the region the story was set in, a technique unusual for the time. Here are some of his Rococo setting illustrations,
Cinderella
Me blogging, oh wait, The Snow Queen
Sleeping Beauty which looks very similar to Madame Tussaud's figure by the same name, modeled after
Madame DuBarry
Also from Sleeping Beauty
Oh and do check out
this beautiful illustration Kinuko Y. Craft did for Cinderella (another favourite children's book illustrator of mine).
Art Images
Boy, you never disappoint. Dulac is one of my fave illustrators. Right with Arthur Rackham. Another one I'm very fond of is George Barbier. Though his work dates from the 1920's, much of it is set in the 18c. You might like "Love Letter" or "The Nightingale" among others. And he was great with androgynous cavorting.
ReplyDeleteI have some Rackham books, but only 1 with Dulac illustrations. I thought he was well-known, but he sure is hard to find. I don't think I know Craft, so will have to look online. I'm sure I'll enjoy!
Thanks so much for such a beautiful start to my day! It's nice to know there are others out there like me. The Snow Queen will be my desktop today.
I am going to have to find my childhood fairy tale book again. After I showed you that one time I lost it! The gowns were so fab! I love the Cinderella guy, especially his shoes!
ReplyDeleteLovely illustrations!! I love beautifully illustrated children's books... I just wish there would be more of them.
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