Peter by the door in the wall
Watercolour
08/1927 (made)
08/1927 (made)
Artist/Maker | |
Place of origin |
Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale.
In spring 1927 Beatrix Potter joined a National Trust campaign to save Cockshott Point on Lake Windermere from development. Her scheme allowed readers of the American Magazine the Horn Book to contribute to ‘The Windermere Fund’, offering fifty original signed drawings from The Tale of Peter Rabbit for sale at a guinea a piece. This drawing of August 1927 reproduces the illustration of Peter by the door in the wall from the well-loved book, when: ‘He found a door in a wall; but it was locked, and there was no room for a fat little rabbit to squeeze underneath.’
Potter’s letter of appeal was published in the August 1927 issue of the Horn Book and was successful. In a letter to her American friend, Marian Frazer Harris Perry, she said: ‘I’m sure I am doing good in trying to save anything I can of our Lake country from being vulgarized; for, as true education advances, the beauty of unspoilt nature will be appreciated; and it would be a pity if the appreciation came too late’.
In spring 1927 Beatrix Potter joined a National Trust campaign to save Cockshott Point on Lake Windermere from development. Her scheme allowed readers of the American Magazine the Horn Book to contribute to ‘The Windermere Fund’, offering fifty original signed drawings from The Tale of Peter Rabbit for sale at a guinea a piece. This drawing of August 1927 reproduces the illustration of Peter by the door in the wall from the well-loved book, when: ‘He found a door in a wall; but it was locked, and there was no room for a fat little rabbit to squeeze underneath.’
Potter’s letter of appeal was published in the August 1927 issue of the Horn Book and was successful. In a letter to her American friend, Marian Frazer Harris Perry, she said: ‘I’m sure I am doing good in trying to save anything I can of our Lake country from being vulgarized; for, as true education advances, the beauty of unspoilt nature will be appreciated; and it would be a pity if the appreciation came too late’.
Object details
Categories | |
Object type | |
Titles |
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Materials and techniques | watercolour and sepia ink on paper |
Brief description | Watercolour and ink drawing from the story of Peter Rabbit, by Beatrix Potter in relation to the Horn Book fund-raising scheme for 'The Windermere Fund', August 1927. Linder Bequest cat. no. LB 1830. |
Physical description | Watercolour and sepia ink replica of the illustration of Peter Rabbit by the door in the wall from The Tale of Beatrix Potter, showing Peter crying in front of a pale blue-grey door, a mouse looking on, a brick wall to the left. |
Dimensions |
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Style | |
Production type | Unique |
Marks and inscriptions | 'Beatrix Potter / Aug. 1927' (inscribed lower right by the artist) |
Credit line | Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number] |
Object history | Made for the Horn Book magazine fund-raiser in 1927. Acquired by the V&A from Leslie Linder (1904-1973) in 1973 as part of the Linder Bequest, a collection of ca. 2150 watercolours, drawings, literary manuscripts, correspondence, books, photographs, and other memorabilia associated with Beatrix Potter and her family. |
Production | Made for sale through the Horn Book for the Windermere Fund to raise money to purchase Cockshott Point on Windermere. |
Subjects depicted | |
Literary reference | The Tale of Peter Rabbit |
Summary | Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) is one of the world's best-loved children's authors and illustrators. She wrote the majority of the twenty-three Original Peter Rabbit Books between 1901 and 1913. The Tale of Peter Rabbit (Frederick Warne, 1902) is her most famous and best-loved tale. In spring 1927 Beatrix Potter joined a National Trust campaign to save Cockshott Point on Lake Windermere from development. Her scheme allowed readers of the American Magazine the Horn Book to contribute to ‘The Windermere Fund’, offering fifty original signed drawings from The Tale of Peter Rabbit for sale at a guinea a piece. This drawing of August 1927 reproduces the illustration of Peter by the door in the wall from the well-loved book, when: ‘He found a door in a wall; but it was locked, and there was no room for a fat little rabbit to squeeze underneath.’ Potter’s letter of appeal was published in the August 1927 issue of the Horn Book and was successful. In a letter to her American friend, Marian Frazer Harris Perry, she said: ‘I’m sure I am doing good in trying to save anything I can of our Lake country from being vulgarized; for, as true education advances, the beauty of unspoilt nature will be appreciated; and it would be a pity if the appreciation came too late’. |
Bibliographic reference | Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection : the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material : watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985.
p.197; no.1830
Hobbs, Anne Stevenson, and Joyce Irene Whalley, eds. Beatrix Potter: the V & A collection: the Leslie Linder bequest of Beatrix Potter material: watercolours, drawings, manuscripts, books, photographs and memorabilia. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1985. p.197; no.1830 |
Other number | LB.1830 - Linder Bequest catalogue no. |
Collection | |
Library number | BP.546 |
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Record created | April 17, 2015 |
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