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This blog has been retired. I won't respond to any inquiries but have retained it in case it is still of interest to anyone passing by.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

Can You Help Me Identify This Artist?


**The information I sought was received 23 April  2012 - see post Success! An answer to my inquiry.

I have always loved the work of this artist but have not been able to identify the person behind these beautiful illustrations.  I'm hoping that if someone comes across this post and is familiar with these paintings, they will leave me a comment and help me shed some light on the artist who painted these enchanting scenes.  It would be wonderful to have a name to associate with this work.  I have included illustrations from these stories before in two previous posts - Wonderful Weddings and Perfect Princesses.  
My enduring passion for fairytale illustrations can largely be traced back to a magazine publication called 'Once Upon a Time' that appeared weekly from 1969 to 1973.  (I have referred to this magazine on a number of occasions in previous posts.)  It was printed and published in England but (as was common at the time) was available throughout the Commonwealth.  This meant I was able to collect these magazines as a child in South Africa and many I've seen for sale recently on eBay can be found in Australia.



The quality of the issues and the wealth of artwork they contain is simply astounding.  Many illustrators that we now consider giants of the era contributed on a regular basis.  I have included a number of these artists in previous posts and still have more to feature.  

Artists already showcased are:      

Jesus Blasco       















                                                   



















  












And the giant amongst giants, Ron Embleton, whose work I have been extremely privileged to collect on a small scale and who has featured fairly prolifically before in my blog. 

The artist featured today is part of this group, but to date I have not been able to trace anything from this work.  Nothing appears to be signed.  This is not unusual (none of the Ron Embleton boards I have bought are signed although some that were used as covers might have the initials RE in a bottom corner - this automatically puts them outside my price range!)  The practice at the time was also not to include any credits inside the publication or acknowledge the contributing artists.  Today I think a lot more recognition is automatically given when anything is published.

I may be wrong but I suspect this artist is probably a man.  I do get the impression of a sort of 'boys club' and I think these illustrators had a good sense of camaraderie and knew each other well.    

The first three illustrations included at the beginning of this post are from a story called 'The Magic Emerald'.  Below are others from a number of different stories.  From the style of the work I'm assuming they are by the same person as they all have the same delicate touch.

'The Magic Horn'
                                               
                             



Wizzie the Wizard'





'The Magic Mirror'





'Prince Adrian's Birthday'






'Bola the Magician'




'Prince Simon's Long Nose'




'The Statue and the Pigeons'




Earlier today I received a lovely surprise.  I am the winner in giveaway from Donna's Designs .  Last week Donna included a commemorative post about the Titanic.  Her giveaway is a CD called 'Music Aboard the Titanic' - I am thrilled to have won it and can't wait for it to arrive.  The Titanic was carrying many immigrant passengers from Ireland so the 100 year anniversary of its sinking has been a very poignant event here.  Donna's blog is beautiful - please pop in to visit (you won't be disappointed.)  Thank you Donna - you have made my day!

   

9 comments:

x said...

I don't know enough to help you with direct knowledge, but I will promote your post to see if anyone I know can help you. Has an oriental feel to the subject perhaps?

Your blog is so interesting!

Unknown said...

The pictures are adorable, but, alas, I'm not much at knowing the artists.

Kylie said...

Sorry, can't help Sharon, but I will keep my eyes out for Once Upon a Time in the local oppies...if there are a lot of Aussie ebay sellers they might pop up in our op-shops too.

Judy Biggerstaff said...

I do like the art but no clue on who the artist might be.

PK HREZO said...

Great pics! Wouldn't know the artist but have you tried goggling the book name with some key words using illustrator? It's amazing what google pulls up with the right words.

Barbara said...

Hello Sharon,
I don’t know the artist, but I wonder if you have found Bear Alley Books?

http://bearalley.blogspot.co.uk/

http://bearalley.blogspot.co.uk/2007/05/look-and-learn-group-artists.html

There is a mass of information about magazines, artists and the like, and you just might find something. The first link is to the main page, and the second link takes you to another page (same site) with lots of information about the illustrators of the Look and Learn magazines. Some of the pictures you show remind me strongly of Look and Learn. I’ve contacted the owner of the site in the past, and he’s always been very helpful. There is a contact email on each page. There is a lot to look at – plus links to other sites so it might take you some time.

Victoria said...

Beautiful blog..it is lovely to meet you! Such a gorgeous array of art..fabulous!
Wishing you a sparkling day!
Victoria

sharonssunlitmemories said...

Thank you everyone for your comments. Even if you didn't recognise the artist I still really appreciate that you took the time to write something.

Kylie - Of the 167 issues printed I'm missing about a dozen. The one I am really hoping to find is issue 63. If you do come across it there please let me know.

Barbara - you are spot on with the connection to Look & Learn. The same group of artists also contributed to World of Wonder. Bear Alley is a great idea - thank you. I found it once before looking for the artist who drew the Princess Marigold strip in Treasure. I think I may just try to contact him directly & take the direct route!

Barbara said...

Thanks for letting me know about the Flower Fairies post. I’m struggling with the new Blogger hence publishing the post before it was ready. I used the ‘revert to draft’ feature, but it obviously doesn’t remove all trace. Are you finding it easy to use?

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