“All the inhabitants of an unreal world [Cruikshank] could readily create; the little innocent devils that go by the name of elf and sprite leapt in full armour from his brain, and it is worth remake that nowhere is the artist’s expressional power so happily exercised as in the faces and forms of these fanciful figures.”
London Examiner, 1875.
Cruikshank was responsible for translating wondrous and outlandish scenes into images that could be printed and reproduced hundreds of times. His book illustrations span many genres; from moments of tender romance to epic displays of magic. His illustrative imagination brought to life familiar tales but also depicted the unseen world.
The illustrations in these collections accompany a variety of texts from children’s gift books and fairy tale compilations to collections of ghost stories. While these illustrations generally capture significant moments in the plots of these stories, many focus on the smaller fantastical moments that capture the wonder or horror of the moment in a cut on the page. In this genre more than any we see Cruikshank’s eye for theatrics and extravagance.
The “Fairy Tale” collection explores Cruikshank’s renditions of popular children’s folktales, the “Whimsy” collection captures the height of Cruikshank’s creativity, and the “Occult” collection showcases Cruikshank’s additions to eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Britain’s obsession with the other-worldly. Together, these collections capture a snapshot of Cruikshank’s expansive and popular illustration career beyond the novel.
Click on the collections below to learn more
Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery