Bookplates by Celia Levetus 

Celia Levetus designed at least twenty-five bookplates, many of which feature a woman reading.  At a time when many women received little education, these images challenged prevailing attitudes. 

John Nettlefold, original owner of Winterbourne, and his sister Grace both had bookplates designed by Celia Levetus.

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by George Bandy

The Birmingham School of Art, England's first Municipal School of Art, opened in 1885 in a Victorian Gothic building designed by John Henry Chamberlain.  Under the guidance of founding Director of Edward R. Taylor, it became an important site of Arts and Crafts design.

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by Rebecca Mitchell

Kate Greenaway

Apple Pie

(George Routledge & Sons, mid-1880s)

Kate Greenaway(1846-1901) was a prolific writer and illustrator of children’s books, and her style inspired many of the Birmingham School artists.  Greenaway studied at the Royal Female School of Art and the Slade School of Fine Art.

The Regency-style dresses depicted by Greenaway influenced Arts and Crafts fashion for middle-class children in the late 19^th century.

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by George Bandy

Designed under the direction of Arthur J. Gaskin (George Allen, 1893)

A Book of Pictured Carols

Arthur Gaskin was an instructor at the Birmingham School, and this volume was produced by his students. The title page border was designed by Georgie Cave (later Georgie Gaskin) and cut in wood by Mildred Peacock. ‘Salvator Mundi’ was by another Birmingham School student, Florence Rutland. A letter from Gaskin to John Thackray Bunce—editor of the Birmingham Daily Post and father of artists Kate and Myra Bunce—is tipped into the copy.

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by George Bandy

Illustrated by Georgie Gaskin

The Little Grey Lady

(Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1893)

The snowdrops in Gaskin’s illustration allude to the answer to the ‘spring riddle’, and the baby animals are mentioned in the poem: ‘…the goslins / the ducklets & chicks / …the dear lambs…’. 

Gaskin was a woman of many talents.  She was also a prolific designer of Arts and Crafts jewellery.

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by George Bandy

The Yellow Book, Volume IX

(Elkin Matthews & John Lane, 1896)

Published between 1894 and 1897, ‘The Yellow Book’ promoted the ‘Aesthetic’ and ‘Decadent’ styles.  The April 1896 volume [displayed] featured an impressive array of women of the Birmingham School, including Celia Levetus, Georgie Gaskin, H. Isabel Adams, and Mary Newill.

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by George Bandy

Written and pictured by Mrs Arthur Gaskin

ABC An Alphabet

(Elkin Matthews, 1895)

These woodcuts by Georgie Gaskin (1866-1934) encpasulate some favourite themes of the Birmingham School:  realistic portrayal of nature, pastoral living, and mediaevalism.  Woodcuts were popular with Arts and Crafts artists, because they linked mediaeval techniques with modern industry.

Gaskin was also inspired by Kate Greenaway’s images of children.

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by George Bandy

Hans Christian Andersen, illustrated by Mary J. Newill

The Nightingale

(Napier, 1896)

Mary Newill presents an exotic interpretation of Andersen’s tale of the Chinese Emperor and his court, which reflects Victorian stereotypes of China.  She fuses Pre-Raphaelite traditions, such as flatness and detailed depiction of natural scenery, with a folk-art style typical of the Arts and Crafts movement.

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by George Bandy

Collected by Dr. Ignácz Kunos, translated from Hungarian by R. Nisbet Bain, illustrated by Celia Levetus

Turkish Fairy Tales and Folk Tales

(Lawrence & Bullen, 1896)

This image illustrates a story called ‘The Wind-Demon’.  Levetus’s quaint designs for the siblings’ clothing and the palace’s lavish interior décor are similar to those seen in fairytale illustrations by Birmingham School lecturer Walter Crane.  They reflect late-Victorian stereotypes of the Middle East.

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by George Bandy

Walter Crane

Of the Decorative Illustration of Books Old and New

(George Bell and Sons, 1896)

Walter Crane was a renowned artist and illustrator, who lectured at the Birmingham school and championed the work of its students.  Here, Crane praises Mary Newill’s works for their ‘ornamental rendering of natural landscapes’, perfectly demonstrated in her idyllic pen and ink drawing of the Somerset village of Porlock.

Mary Newill (1860–1947), who also designed textiles, studied and later taught at the Birmingham School.

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by George Bandy

Celia Levetus
The Cinder Youth
Pen and ink, around 1896

In this pen and ink study for Turkish Fairy Tales, Levetus demonstrates her adept use of 'saturated' black. While the flattened space recalls the Pre-Raphaelites, Levetus has also been influenced by the 'Aesthetic' and 'Decadent' movements, particularly the stark, dramatic use of black in Aubrey Beardsley's illustrations.

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by George Bandy

Andrew White Tuer

History of the Horn-Book, Volume II

(Leadenhall Press, 1897)

This richly illustrated volume contains a space for storing ‘horn books’.  These educational tools had been used to teach reading from mediaeval times. The striking purple ‘battledore’ horn book, embossed in gold on its highly-coloured back, features a comical poem bordering the main content. The illustrators include Birmingham School artists Georgie Cave France (later Gaskin), C. M. Gere and Celia Levetus, whose image ‘Taskmistress’ won an award.

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by George Bandy

Poems by Edward Levetus, illustrations by Celia Levetus

Verse Fancies

(Chapman & Hall, 1899)

This collection was created by the brother and sister duo, Edward and Celia Levetus.  ‘Love in Ambush’ depicts a typically English scene, with luscious rose bushes and dense foliage in the background.  The peacock adds a contemporary twist – peacocks often appear in the work of ‘Aesthetic’ artists such as Aubrey Beardsley. 

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by George Bandy

Rev. Isaac Watts, illustrated by Mrs. Arthur Gaskin

Divine and Moral Songs

(Elkin Matthews, 1901)

Georgie Gaskin’s colour illustrations bring new life to this enduring religious ‘manual’ for children, which was first published in 1715.  Her simple line drawings and subtle use of colour are reminiscent of Kate Greenaway’s work, and were more accessible than earlier 19^th-century illustrations.  Gaskin’s delicate and naïve style appealed to late Victorian taste.

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by George Bandy

William Blake, with designs by Celia Levetus

Songs of Experience

(Nutt, 1902)

In contrast to her work in Blake’s ‘Songs of Innocence’, here Levetus introduces a more unsettling and menacing undertone, echoing the uneasiness in the poems (first published in 1794).  Bare, spindly branches wrap around the image, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere.  The snake, a symbol of Satan, looms threateningly on the left, while the winged woman to the right seems to be protecting the two frightened children at her feet.

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by George Bandy

Written and illustrated by H. Isabel Adams

Wild flowers of the British Islands, Volume I

(Heinemann, 1907-10)

This book reminds us of the role women played in the sciences during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries.  In contrast to the preference for black and white among Birmingham School artists, Isabel Adams uses colour.  Employing her keen powers of observation and attention to detail, she creates highly realistic images of plant anatomy for her audience.

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by George Bandy