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Goble is in #s 9 & 11 of |
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Warwick Goble isn't exactly a household name. He was born in 1862 - think Remington, Russell, Hugh Thompson, Herbert Railton, Arthur Rackham, John D. Batten, Frank Brangwyn, and Joseph Pennell for contemporaries. He was raised in London, went to The City of London School (just five years ahead of Rackham) and attended the Westminster School of Art. He worked for a printer that did chromolithography and contributed to the Pall Mall Gazette and the Westminster Gazette, illustrated papers of the day.
His
watercolors were the perfect vehicle for the new illustrated books
of the early 20th century. He was exhibiting at the Royal
Academy as early as 1893, so this appears to have been
his focus. It wasn't until 1896 (at the age of 34!) that he began
dabbling at illustrating books. One of his earliest books (which
isn't listed in any of the bibliographies we've found) was The
Oracle of Baal in 1896. From the image at left, you can see
that he wasn't ready to set the publishing world on fire just
yet. His third book was H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds in
1898. A smattering of books appeared over the next decade - only
three or four. But by 1909, the publishers were immersed in a
public demand for color-plate books spurred by the wonderful efforts
of Rackham and Dulac.
Starting
in 1905, with books like Rackham's
Rip Van Winkle and his Peter Pan In Kensington Gardens
along with Dulac's Arabian
Nights - both in 1907, a strong market had sprung up for color-plate books, especially fantasy and fairy tale subjects. Goble,
well-versed in watercolor techniques and very influenced by the
same Japanese techniques that fascinated Dulac, was perfectly
suited to the task of producing the plates. Whereas he'd done
about five books in the ten years from 1897 to 1907, he produced
about ten books in the five years from 1909 to 1913. Starting
with an edition of The Water Babies in 1909, followed closely
by Green Willow and Other Japanese Fairy Tales in 1910,
these were some of the most lavishly illustrated books of the
day. Water Babies had 32 color plates and Green Willow,
40 (the top image is one of the 16 plates that survived into the
abbreviated second edition). The Dulac
influence is present, but I don't think it is as obvious as some
would claim. Also from Green Willow is the enchanting Moon
Maiden at right.
| 1911 saw the publication of Stories From the Pentamerone, with 32 color plates. Two Pogany-esque samples below. | |
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It
becomes more and more evident as I list these titles, that Goble
had become the designated artist for Asian story books. Other
titles that fit neatly into his forte are Folk Tales of Bengal
(1912, 32 plates) and Indian Myth and Legend (1913, eight
plates) - left and right, respectively. Another entry into the Eastern parade
was Indian Tales of the Great Ones (1916). The 32 plates
of his 1912 Chaucer, while not as exotic, are equally appealing.
He
continued working into the late 1920s. In 1925, he illustrated
Treasure Island and Kidnapped for Macmillan (image
at right), in the same series that contained so many wonderful
titles from Eric Pape. The
Alhambra (1926) and Tod of the Fens (1928) might also
be from that series.
Goble's art occasionally rose to the classic level and often
was only competent. His color sense and his watercolor techniques
were always of the highest caliber. He created some truly memorable
images. He died in 1943.
To learn more about Warwick Goble, see:| The Dictionary of British Book Illustrators and Caricaturists 1800-1914 | Simon Houfe, 1981 Antique Collectors' Club |
| Book Illustrators of the Twentieth Century | Peppin and Micklethwait, 1984 Arco |
| The Dictionary of 20th Century British Book Illustrators | Alan Horne, 1994 Antique Collectors' Club |
| The Vadeboncoeur Collection of Knowledge | Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. 1999 |
| The Vadeboncoeur Collection of ImageS 9, 11 | Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. 2007, 2009 JVJ Publishing |
|
Illustrations are copyright by their
respective owners. This page written, designed & © 1999 by Jim Vadeboncoeur, Jr. Updated 2011. |
