Raymond Sheppard and Seal Morning - Part Two

Here are another 10 images from Rowena Farre's Seal Morning

Seal head above water

Lora with mouth organ

Mouse

Fledgeling birds

Lora and xylophone

Red setter

Lora on rock

Outline seal

Repeat from Page 21 where rabbit jumps wall - see previous post

Young stag

Raymond Sheppard and Seal Morning - Part One

Raymond Sheppard (1913-1958)

I have been a fan of Raymond Sheppard for many years (how long ago was 1969?) when I tripped over this quite tatty paperback version of Rowena Farre's Seal Morning

Seal Morning

Hidden in this unassuming paperback were such fantastic pencil drawings that they stayed with me for the rest of my life. Little did I know that they would send me on an exciting journey.

I own loads of magazines, books, and leaflets by Sheppard, information about his life and have met with his daughter Christine and son Michael. I have been invited to previews of exhibitions displaying his art. I felt it was time with the publication of my article in Illustrators magazine (Issue #2) that I started to share this material more widely and this seems the perfect forum.

Sheppard illustrated in all sorts of media, he produced educational materials, magazine illustrations, book illustrations, advertising posters and artwork as well as many drawings, and paintings for his own pleasure. There are no end of materials to share.

So without further ado, let's get started on my journey with Raymond Sheppard....

 

Squirrel outline

Squirrel

Seal pup

Seal pup on mat

Seal head

Rabbit jumps wall

Common seal

One of many chapter headings

Rat

This shows how Sheppard's illustrations interact with the page of text.

 A further 10 illustrations from Seal Morning to follow...

Raymond Sheppard - Christmas Miracle

"Christmas Miracle" in Argosy Jan 1957

It's time to start adding posts to this blog now that advanced copies of Illustrators issue number two has reached our shores! Yours will be here early January - author's privilege! Geoff West, Peter Richardson and team have produced an excellent magazine - squarebound - almost a book, in which you can read about  

• A Brush with Fitzrovia: The Elegant Art of David Wright (see link for art)
  
• Blades and Brocades: The Art of Cecil Doughty (see link for art)
• Taking the Rough with the Smooth: The Urbane Art of Renato Fratini and also
• Under the Great Arch of Heaven: The Iridescent World of Raymond Sheppard 

 by myself - don't believe the introduction where it claims that Norman Wright wrote it! My shoulders are too broad to worry about such things. Norman Wright has written lots of scholarly articles on illustrators, magazines and comics, but he's not me.
Anyway to get a sneak peek click on the link below the cover, where you can see the first two pages of my article but also the other quality articles

Click here for preview

The January 1957 issue of Argosy contained, as far as I can tell, the first telling of Paul Gallico's 'Christmas Miracle' story. It was later reprinted and illustrated by Janet and Anne Grahame-Johnstone as Miracle in the Wilderness and told the story set in the 18th century colonial wars in America when the God of the Christians and the God of the Indians combined to produce a touching Christmas miracle. Raymond Sheppard illustrated it in Argosy with one black and white scene of a buck, doe and fawn - see above.

Sheppard sketched all the time and here courtesy of Christine, his daughter, is one of a buck with antlers.

Raymond Sheppard - Illustrator

This opening page is to announce the start of another blog...this time on a forgotten artist who is beginning to be recognized again for his versatile subjects and strong illustrative and painting talents.

I will populate this blog later this year to mark the publication of an article in Illustrators #2. But to start the sharing of Raymond Sheppard's artwork here is his colour cover from Boy's Own Paper May 1955

Boy's Own Paper May 1955

And here is the illustration he did to accompany the cover story "The Red Fear" by  Keith Horan

Boy's Own Paper May 1955 pages 20-21