Not on display

Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes

Illustration
1906 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Hilda Gertrude Cowham (1873-1964) painted landscapes and domestic scenes and illustrated a number of children's books. Educated at Wimbledon School of Art, Lambeth School of Art and at the Royal College of Art, Cowham was one of the first women to contribute illustrations to Punch. She was also a regular contributor to The Graphic and The Sketch, designed posters for the Underground Group from 1913 to 1914, and produced designs with Mabel Lucie Attwell for Shelley China from 1924.

This drawing is the design for page 1 of Cowham's children's book, Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes, pictured in colours by Hilda Cowham and published in London by David Nutt in 1906. The boy's adventures include taking a baby skating, hunting for ghosts and eloping with a girl from a party.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Titles
  • <u>Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes</u> (manufacturer's title)
  • <u>Peter Pickle</u> (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Pen and ink and crayon on card
Brief description
Pen and ink and crayon drawing by Hilda Gertrude Cowham, 1906; illustration for 'Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes', published in London by David Nutt.
Physical description
Pen and ink and blue crayon drawing on paper pasted onto card of a book page design, incorporating a cartoon strip of eight sections with text annotations in pencil.
Dimensions
  • Height: 221mm
  • Width: 265mm
Production typeUnique
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'From the Library of Anne Renier and F.G. Renier' (Bookplate on verso)
  • '62073' (Pencil note on bottom left verso)
  • '1' (Pencil note at top right of drawing, indicating page 1)
  • 'H. Cowham' (Artist's signature in bottom right)
  • 'Monday - how Jack and I took a Baby for a skate' (Text annotation)
  • 'Nobody's looking let's put this pair on that baby' (Text annotation)
  • 'They're on, so come along dear' (Text annotation)
  • 'Fine eh? Don't you like it, missy?' (Text annotation)
  • 'Well we never saw that 'Danger' board' (Text annotation)
  • 'Dear Dear. We shall catch it. I hope Pa's not at home' (Text annotation)
  • 'Look at my poor baby, mum. They ought to both be spanked the brutes' (Text annotation)
  • 'I wonder if it'll be whips behind or bread & water eh?' (Text annotation)
  • 'Boo! Boo!!! it was both' (Text annotation)
Credit line
Donated by Anne Renier and F.G. Renier.
Object history
Drawn by Hilda Gertrude Cowham for Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes, published in London by David Nutt in 1906. Bequeathed to the V&A in 1970 by Anne and Fernand G. Renier as part of the Renier Collection.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Hilda Gertrude Cowham (1873-1964) painted landscapes and domestic scenes and illustrated a number of children's books. Educated at Wimbledon School of Art, Lambeth School of Art and at the Royal College of Art, Cowham was one of the first women to contribute illustrations to Punch. She was also a regular contributor to The Graphic and The Sketch, designed posters for the Underground Group from 1913 to 1914, and produced designs with Mabel Lucie Attwell for Shelley China from 1924.

This drawing is the design for page 1 of Cowham's children's book, Peter Pickle and his dog Fido: the diary of a week of scrapes, pictured in colours by Hilda Cowham and published in London by David Nutt in 1906. The boy's adventures include taking a baby skating, hunting for ghosts and eloping with a girl from a party.
Other numbers
  • Ren. Planchest A - Previous Renier Collection pressmark
  • Ren.42.T.1(ii) - Previous Renier Collection pressmark
  • R(Z)106 - Previous National Art Library accession number
Collection
Library number
RENIER.396

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Record createdMarch 19, 2008
Record URL
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