If the name Rene Cloke isn’t one you recognise, you aren’t alone – I hadn’t heard of her either until Steve Holland posted a piece on this 20th century children’s illustrator over on the Bear Alley blog. It is sad that someone who spent several decades as an illustrator could slip so easily out of mind even among regular readers and makes me wonder how many other unsung heroes of British (or any nation’s) illustration there are out there, largely forgotten and unknown to most of us. On the positive side of things though, this means when someone like Steve celebrates their work (with an impressive bibliogrpahy included) we do get that pleasant feeling of discovery.
I think this illustration Steve posted for the old nursery rhyme Simple Simon is quite beautiful; it seems to straddle a middle ground between much earlier nursery rhymes and fairy tale books in style and comics, while the colours are lovely (take your Cynical Glasses off for a moment and imagine how this would look to a child. Or an adult if you are honest). Steve regularly posts some very informative pieces on classic comics and illustration (kudos to you, Steve), often, as with Rene Cloke, bringing up someone I’ve never heard of, so add Bear Alley to your bookmarks and sample some of the wee illustration gems from yesteryear that Steve finds, polishes up and puts on display to be enjoyed once more.
Thu, Apr 5, 2007
Comics and cartoons