Monday, December 31, 2012

Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939


Six color illustrations and eight black and white drawings grace this beautiful edition of The Little Mermaid, illustrated by Dorothy Lathrop and published by The Macmillan Company in 1939. (More biography here.)

Each illustration was scanned from an original, rare copy. The pages are unnumbered and the illustrations are not indexed or captioned, so I have added them, based on a reading of the text and some adaptation. 

There is both delicacy and richness, and strong composition to the color work and the drawings. As I read this story, it is my wish that the little mermaid had never left the sea. I think, perhaps, Dorothy Lathrop felt the same, for her color illustrations include only fins.


Click each illustration to view them in great detail. (The first is a sample preview of the larger image below.)






All the stars of heaven were falling
in showers round about her.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

Cover Gold Leaf Decoration










Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

Title Page









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

Page One









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

The strangest trees and flowers grow there,

with leaves and stems so flexible
that at the least motion of the water
they move just as if they were alive.








Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

In her garden she would have nothing 

but the rosy flowers like the sun up above,
except a statue of a beautiful boy,
hewn out of the purest white marble.








Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

She had never seen such magic fires.
Great suns whirled round, gorgeous fire-fish
hung in the blue air, and all was reflected
in the calm and glassy sea.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

In the middle of the room was a broad stream
of running water, and on this stream
the mermaids and mermen danced
to their own beautiful singing.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

The bleached bones of those who had perished
peeped forth from their arms. At the mere
sight of the bright liquid which sparkled
in her hands like a shining star,
they drew back in terror.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

One night her sisters came. They sang
so sorrowfully as they swam on the water
that she beckoned to them and they told her
how she had grieved them all.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

There were six beautiful children, but the
youngest was the prettiest of all.











Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

Nothing gave her more pleasure
than to hear about the world of human
beings up above. Her old grandmother
told her all that she knew.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

The third sister wanted to play with them,
but they were frightened. She could never forget
the lovely children  who could swim in the water,
though they had no fishes' tails.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

His limbs were numbed, his beautiful eyes
were closing, and he must have died
if the little mermaid had not come to his rescue.
She held his head above the water and let the waves
drive them whithersoever they would.










Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

There sat the witch. She called the
hideous water snakes her little chickens
and allowed them to crawl about
on her unsightly bosom.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

One night she saw, a long way out, her old grandmother,
and the Merman King with his crown on his head.
They stretched out their hands toward her.











Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

He loved her as one loves a good sweet child, but
it never entered his head to make her his queen.









Dorothy Lathrop ~ The Little Mermaid ~ 1939

Never had she danced so divinely.
She went on laughing and dancing with the
thought of death all the time in her heart.








I love sharing images, and I'd love to know what you think about the art, and the artists. Please add your comments to start the New Year.


Back to Top



Text © 2012 Art of Narrative

Monday, July 23, 2012

Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale ~ Idylls of the King ~ 1913


Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Tennyson

Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Guinevere

As in the golden days.


~ See All 21 Illustrations Below ~



Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale (1871-1945) created these illustrations for Tennyson's Idylls of the King, published by Hodder & Stoughton in 1913. Follow the link on her name to read her biography, and click *here* to read the poems and to view the images in their original context, where the illustrations are framed by lovely borders.

All 21 illustrations are presented here. Click each image from Enid, Vivien, Elaine and Guinevere for high resolution, and guess which may be my favorites.





Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Frontispiece, Illustration for Vivien

Sir Lancelot went ambassador, at first,
To fetch her, and she took him for the King.
















Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Enid

To make her beauty vary day by day,
In crimsons and in purples and in gems.










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Enid

Enid









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Enid

Yniol's rusted arms
were on his princely person, but thro' these
Princelike his bearing shone.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Enid

They rode so slowly and they look'd so pale.








Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Enid

And many past, but none regarded her.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Vivien

At which the King
Had gazed upon her blankly and gone by.










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Vivien

O master do you love my tender rhyme?










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Vivien

Nor saw she save the King, who wrought the charm.










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Vivien

And in the hollow oak he lay as dead,
And lost to life and use and name and fame.










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Elaine

Elaine











Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Elaine

Then to her tower she climb'd, and took the shield,
There kept it, and so lived in fantasy.










Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Elaine

But to be with you still, to see your face,
To serve you, and to follow you 'thro the world.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Elaine

So those two brethren from the chariot took
And on the black decks laid her in her bed.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Elaine

Farewell, fair lily.







Add caption
Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

The Queen who sat betwixt her best
Enid, and lissome Vivien, of her court
The wiliest and the worst.








Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

It was their last hour,
A madness of  farewells.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

Before the coming of the sinful Queen.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

They found a naked child upon the sands
Of dark Dundagil by the Cornish sea;
And that was Arthur; and they foster'd him
Till he by miracles was approven King.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

As in the golden days.









Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale

Idylls of the King by Alfred Lord Tennyson
London: Hodder & Stoughton ~ 1913

Illustration for Guinevere

The sombre close of that voluptuous day
Which wrought the ruin of my lord the King.







Return to the Top


Text © 2012 Art of Narrative

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Katharine Cameron ~ King Arthur's Knights ~ 1907


Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Book Cover






Katherine Cameron (1874-1965), a member of the Glasgow School, illustrated several books in the Told to the Children series, edited in the early 1900's by Louey Chisholm, and published in London by T. C. & E. C. Jack. She was also a watercolor artist and an accomplished etcher with a love for painting landscapes and flowers. I enjoy the romantic nature of her work, her choice of colors, and the understated drama of her compositions.

In this book, her frontispiece and The Death of King Arthur are her most realistic illustrations. My favorites are from the stories of Geraint and Enid, Lancelot and Elaine, Pelleas and Ettarde, and Sir Galahad. Click the internet archive's link to Project Gutenberg to view the eight illustrations and to read the Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children, adapted from Sir Thomas Malory by Mary MacGregor.






Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Frontispiece: Geraint and Enid










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Geraint and Enid










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Lancelot and Elaine










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Pelleas and Ettarde










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Gareth and Lynette










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Gareth and Lynette










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

Sir Galahad and the Sacred Cup










Katharine Cameron ~ 1907

Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
Adapted by Mary MacGregor

The Death of King Arthur








Return to Top

Text © 2012 Art of Narrative