Cows in a field
Drawing
1899-1910 (drawn)
1899-1910 (drawn)
| 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.
Beatrix Potter enjoyed sketching all kinds of animals from life, from her own pets, which often became the inspiration for her animal characters, to the animals that populated the Lake District farms she owned later in life. This sketch of cows in a field is inscribed ‘Sidmouth’, revealing it to have been made during one of the holidays to the South West that Potter took with her parents: these trips inspired numerous drawings. The Potters’ visited Sidmouth in the springtime in 1899, 1901, 1902 and 1910.
The West Country also inspired some of Potter’s writing: she conceived The Tale of Little Pig Robinson (published 1930) whilst staying in south Devon in 1883. The story’s setting is the ‘pretty little town’ of ‘Stymouth’ – a fictional blend of Sidmouth and Teignmouth in south Devon with Lyme Regis in Dorset.
Beatrix Potter enjoyed sketching all kinds of animals from life, from her own pets, which often became the inspiration for her animal characters, to the animals that populated the Lake District farms she owned later in life. This sketch of cows in a field is inscribed ‘Sidmouth’, revealing it to have been made during one of the holidays to the South West that Potter took with her parents: these trips inspired numerous drawings. The Potters’ visited Sidmouth in the springtime in 1899, 1901, 1902 and 1910.
The West Country also inspired some of Potter’s writing: she conceived The Tale of Little Pig Robinson (published 1930) whilst staying in south Devon in 1883. The story’s setting is the ‘pretty little town’ of ‘Stymouth’ – a fictional blend of Sidmouth and Teignmouth in south Devon with Lyme Regis in Dorset.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Cows in a field |
| Materials and techniques | pencil on paper |
| Brief description | Pencil drawing showing two cows in a field with trees and cottages in the background; drawn by Beatrix Potter in Sidmouth, 1899-1910; Linder Bequest cat. no. LB.156. |
| Physical description | A pencil drawing of two cows in a field, with trees and cottages beyond. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Unique |
| Marks and inscriptions | 'Sidmouth' (Written in pencil by the artist, lower left.) |
| Credit line | Linder Bequest [plus object number; written on labels on the same line as the object number] |
| Object history | Drawn by Beatrix Potter at Sidmouth, probably between 1899 and 1910. 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. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| 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. Beatrix Potter enjoyed sketching all kinds of animals from life, from her own pets, which often became the inspiration for her animal characters, to the animals that populated the Lake District farms she owned later in life. This sketch of cows in a field is inscribed ‘Sidmouth’, revealing it to have been made during one of the holidays to the South West that Potter took with her parents: these trips inspired numerous drawings. The Potters’ visited Sidmouth in the springtime in 1899, 1901, 1902 and 1910. The West Country also inspired some of Potter’s writing: she conceived The Tale of Little Pig Robinson (published 1930) whilst staying in south Devon in 1883. The story’s setting is the ‘pretty little town’ of ‘Stymouth’ – a fictional blend of Sidmouth and Teignmouth in south Devon with Lyme Regis in Dorset. |
| 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. 24; no. 156
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. 24; no. 156 |
| Other number | LB.156 - Linder Bequest catalogue no. |
| Collection | |
| Library number | BP.395 |
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| Record created | May 3, 2017 |
| Record URL |
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