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Arthur Rackham
Arthur rackham selfportrait.jpg
Self-portrait, 1934
Born (1867-09-19)19 September 1867
London, England
Died 6 September 1939(1939-09-06) (aged 71)
Limpsfield, Surrey, England
Known for Children's literature, Illustration
Rhinegold and the Valkyries p 032
One of Rackham's illustrations to Das Rheingold, 1910, showing Fasolt and Fafner taking Freia.

Arthur Rackham (born September 19, 1867 – died September 6, 1939) was a famous English artist who illustrated books. He is known as one of the most important artists during the "Golden Age" of British book illustration. His art is special because of his strong pen and ink drawings, which he often combined with watercolours. He learned this technique from his early job as a newspaper illustrator.

One of his most important works was the 51 colour pictures he made for the American story Rip Van Winkle. These illustrations helped change how books were made because they showed how to print colour artwork very accurately. Some of his other well-known works include illustrations for Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm.

Arthur Rackham's Life Story

Rackham was born in London, England, and was one of 12 children. When he was 17, he traveled by ship to Australia to help his health. At 18, he worked as an insurance clerk and also studied art part-time at the Lambeth School of Art.

In 1892, he left his office job and started working for a newspaper called Westminster Budget as a reporter and artist. His first book illustrations were published in 1893. However, his first big art job was in 1894 for a book called The Dolly Dialogues. After that, illustrating books became his full-time career for the rest of his life.

Around 1900, Rackham became well-known for his fantasy drawings made with pen and ink. He illustrated popular gift books like The Ingoldsby Legends (1898), Gulliver's Travels, and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm (both 1900). He also drew for children's magazines such as Little Folks. In 1903, he married his neighbor, Edyth Starkie. They had one daughter, Barbara, in 1908.

Rackham became very famous when his full-colour pictures for Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle were published in 1905. His fame grew even more the next year with his illustrations for J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens. He often showed his original artwork in exhibitions, which helped him earn more money. He won gold medals at international exhibitions in Milan (1906) and Barcelona (1912). His art was even shown at the Louvre museum in Paris in 1914. Rackham was a member of the Art Workers' Guild and became its leader in 1919.

The family lived in London until 1920, when they moved to Houghton, West Sussex. In 1929, they settled in a new home in Limpsfield, Surrey. Ten years later, Arthur Rackham passed away at home from cancer.

Why Arthur Rackham Was Important

Arthur Rackham 001
Photograph of Rackham by Emil Hoppé.

Arthur Rackham is seen as one of the most important illustrators from the "Golden Age" of British book illustration. This period lasted from about 1890 until the end of World War I. During this time, there was a big demand for high-quality illustrated books, which were often given as Christmas presents. Many of Rackham's books were made in special, limited editions, often signed by him.

Experts agree that Rackham was one of the best illustrators of his time. One writer, Salaman, said that Rackham was unique because his "genius is so thoroughly original." He added that Rackham's elves were "elfish" and his witches and gnomes were "convincingly of their kind."

Another expert, Hamilton, wrote that Rackham brought new excitement to book illustration. His art, with its soft colours and detailed lines, used new printing methods to create amazing pictures and characters. These pictures made children's books more exciting and had a big impact on book illustration at the start of the 20th century.

Since his death, Arthur Rackham's works have become very popular in both North America and Britain. His images are often used on greeting cards, and many of his books are still available today. His original drawings and paintings are highly valued and sought after by art collectors.

Arthur Rackham's Art Style

Arthur Rackham Cinderella silhouette illustration
Cinderella silhouette illustration, 1919.

Rackham's illustrations were mostly based on strong drawings made with pen and India ink. He developed his unique style from his early work as a newspaper illustrator. He combined these detailed line drawings with soft watercolour washes. This technique became possible because of new ways to reproduce art using photography. This meant that his drawings could be photographed and printed directly, without needing someone else to carve them onto wood or metal plates.

Rackham would first lightly sketch his ideas with a soft pencil. Then, he would carefully draw over them with pen and India ink. After the drawing was taking shape, he would erase the pencil lines. For his colour pictures, Rackham liked to use a printing method that used three colours to create delicate shades. Sometimes, to make sure the details were clear in the final print, he would go over his drawings with ink again after painting them. He also became known for using silhouette (dark shape) pictures, especially after World War I, as seen in his books Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella.

Rackham usually included both colour and black-and-white illustrations in his books. His art is often described as a mix of a northern European "Nordic" style and the Japanese woodblock art from the early 1800s.

Famous Books Illustrated by Arthur Rackham

Frontispiece to English Fairy Tales (Steel)
Frontispiece of English Fairy Tales by Flora Annie Steel, 1918.
Rackham fairy ring
"The Fairy Ring", illustration to Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, 1908.
Arthur Rackham Memorial Plaque
Memorial plaque to Arthur Rackham and Edyth Starkie Rackham, St. Michael's Church, Amberley, West Sussex.


Images for kids

  • Jack and the Beanstalk Giant - Project Gutenberg eText 17034

    "Fee-fi-fo-fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman", illustration to a 1918 English Fairy Tales, by Flora Annie Steel

  • Sangreal

    "How at the Castle of Corbin a Maiden Bare in the Sangreal and Foretold the Achievements of Galahad", from The Romance of King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table, by Alfred W. Pollard, 1917

  • Galligantus - Project Gutenberg eText 17034

    "The giant Galligantua and the wicked old magician transform the duke's daughter into a white hind", illustration to English Fairy Tales, by Flora Annie Steel

  • Cormoran - Project Gutenberg eText 17034

    "The giant Cormoran was the terror of all the country-side", illustration to English Fairy Tales, by Flora Annie Steel

  • The Three Bears - Project Gutenberg eText 17034

    "The Three Bears", illustration to English Fairy Tales, by Flora Annie Steel

  • Siegfried and the Twilight of the Gods p 110

    "Siegfried leaving Brünnhilde", illustration to Richard Wagner's The Ring

  • The-Twa-Corbies

    "The Twa Corbies", illustration to Some British Ballads

  • David-PeterPanInKensingtonGardens

    "One day they were overheard by a fairy", illustration of Maimie and Tony in Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens

  • Illustration to the ballad Young Beckie from "Some British Ballads"

    "‘O waken, waken, Burd Isbel", from Young Beichan, Child ballad number 53

How Arthur Rackham Influenced Others

War memorial designed by Eugène Aernauts (2)
War memorial designed by Eugène Aernauts after the illustration Unconquerable Belgium by Arthur Rackham. From King Albert'S Book, Published 1915.

Rackham's unique art style inspired many other artists. These include Gustaf Tenggren, Brian Froud, William Stout, Tony DiTerlizzi, and Abigail Larson. Brian Froud has said that Rackham's early drawings, especially his "trees that had faces," made him interested in illustrating fairy tales.

The look of the 1977 animated film The Hobbit was based on Rackham's early illustrations.

Director Guillermo del Toro has also mentioned Rackham as an influence. He said that Rackham's dark and realistic drawings inspired the design of "The Faun" creature in his movie Pan's Labyrinth. In another one of his films, Hellboy, a tree growing out of an altar is even called a "Rackham tree" by the director because of its similar style.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Arthur Rackham para niños

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