Saturday 18 December 2010

House of Illustration display and auction at Sotheby's - Tuesday 14th December 2010

This was not strictly an invitation in my capacity as Master, but it was so interesting that I have to tell you about it.

Liveryman Ardi Kolah is a trustee of the House of Illustration, a charity promoting and preserving what they call the world's most accessible art form. www.houseofillustration.org.uk
He kindly invited me to their exhibition of illustrations (mainly) from children's books of the 20th century, including Quentin Blake, Kate Greenaway, Eric Carle (The Very Hungry Caterpillar), Nick Park, Beatrix Potter, Arthur Rackham, Arthur Ransome, E H Shepard and Margaret Tarrent. What a feast for the eyes and heart.

The highlight of the evening was a reading by Peter Capaldi of two extracts from 'A Christmas Carol', accompanied by Quentin Blake live-illustrating the story, with his hand, pen and paper projected onto a screen so we could watch the drawing emerge. A touch of the Rolf Harrises, but on a smaller scale.

Some of the illustrations were auctioned on 16th December, raising about £70,000 for the charity. Good luck to it.

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