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Cinderella, Drury Lane

Poster
1896 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

People

Dudley Hardy made his name originally as a painter and illustrator. His bold venture into poster design in the 1890s gave him scope for all sorts of unconventional ideas. Although he was influenced by designers of the French 'artistic' poster, such as Jules Cheret, he developed a characteristically English approach with his simplified style and integrated lettering. After his initial success with a poster nicknamed 'The Yellow Girl', advertising the To-Day magazine, many of his earliest posters were commissioned for theatrical productions by the well-known firm of publishers Waterlow & Sons.

Design & Designing

Hardy gave his views on design in an interview with the same magazine in December 1899: 'both from the artistic and commercial point of view, [posters] should be as simple and striking as possibly; very little background, very little detail, a bold, striking line which will arrest the eye of the passer-by.'

Subjects Depicted

Poster Magazine in 1898 criticised the pantomime poster for mostly remaining 'high and dry on its island of vulgarity', with lurid colour and lack of artistic quality. This poster, for the 1896 pantomime Cinderella has an economy and grace that defies that viewpoint and demonstrates why the same magazine praised the clarity of outline and colour schemes in Hardy’s work and described him as a pioneer of the 'artistic' poster.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleCinderella, Drury Lane (generic title)
Materials and techniques
colour lithography
Brief description
'Cinderella, Drury Lane'. Colour lithograph poster advertising a performance of the pantomime at the Drury Lane Theatre, London. England. 1896.
Physical description
'Cinderella, Drury Lane'. Colour lithograph poster advertising a performance of the pantomime at the Drury Lane Theatre, London. The design shows Cinderella in a white dress, with white powdered hair, arriving at the ball. She is climbing red carpeted stairs and a footman at the top is popinting to his left. Three footmen in the foreground are bowing as she passes. The wall is yellow and green. The text is in a beige border around the image.
Dimensions
  • Height: 148.8cm
  • Width: 97.6cm
Dimensions taken from: Summary Catalogue of British Posters to 1988 in the Victoria & Albert Museum in the Department of Design, Prints & Drawing. Emmett Publishing, 1990. 129 p. ISBN: 1 869934 12 1
Marks and inscriptions
  • 'CINDERELLA' (Yellow block with black outline, across top.)
  • 'DRURY LANE' (Yellow block with black outline, across bottom.)
  • 'Dudley Hardy' (Signed on stone in black, left centre.)
  • 'Waterlow & Sons Ltd. Lith. LONDON WALL. LONDON.' (Lower left.)
  • 'COPYRIGHT REGD.' (Lower right.)
Gallery label
(2010)
British Galleries:
The designer Dudley Hardy was known as a poster pioneer. He believed that a poster should be simple, with little background and detail, with a 'bold, striking line' to catch the eye. Bold outlines and strong colours typify his work.
Credit line
Given by Mrs J.T. Clarke
Subjects depicted
Summary
People

Dudley Hardy made his name originally as a painter and illustrator. His bold venture into poster design in the 1890s gave him scope for all sorts of unconventional ideas. Although he was influenced by designers of the French 'artistic' poster, such as Jules Cheret, he developed a characteristically English approach with his simplified style and integrated lettering. After his initial success with a poster nicknamed 'The Yellow Girl', advertising the To-Day magazine, many of his earliest posters were commissioned for theatrical productions by the well-known firm of publishers Waterlow & Sons.

Design & Designing

Hardy gave his views on design in an interview with the same magazine in December 1899: 'both from the artistic and commercial point of view, [posters] should be as simple and striking as possibly; very little background, very little detail, a bold, striking line which will arrest the eye of the passer-by.'

Subjects Depicted

Poster Magazine in 1898 criticised the pantomime poster for mostly remaining 'high and dry on its island of vulgarity', with lurid colour and lack of artistic quality. This poster, for the 1896 pantomime Cinderella has an economy and grace that defies that viewpoint and demonstrates why the same magazine praised the clarity of outline and colour schemes in Hardy’s work and described him as a pioneer of the 'artistic' poster.
Bibliographic references
  • The Poster, Vol. 2, December 1899.
  • Haill, Catherine. Theatre Posters. London, HMSO, 1983.
  • Summary Catalogue of British Posters to 1988 in the Victoria & Albert Museum in the Department of Design, Prints & Drawing. Emmett Publishing, 1990. 129 p. ISBN: 1 869934 12 1
Other number
17/B3 - V&A microfiche
Collection
Accession number
E.387-1921

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
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