F I N E B O O K S & M A N U S C R I P T S
your words of cheer + encouragement, it has put new life into a chap. I have now started on the drawings for my book and find that easier than writing.” Baynes clearly provided important feedback to Shepard about both the text and the drawings, “You were right about my book - you said it should be in the first person and so it is, now” (17th December 1956). The most moving element of the letters is that they are a record of a tender and loving friendship. Later in the letter quoted above, Shepard writes “I wish so much I could give you some of my optimism. You must have more confidence, darling you must - you are much better than you think you are.” This kindness, friendship and mentor- ship is in evidence from the very first letter, where Shepard is recommending some representation that might help with “getting back your originals” (29th March 1956). He is concerned about the same issue the following year when he writes “if only you could sell some of your originals and not let the wretched publishers take it all” (Au- gust 19th 1957). Later, in 1958, Shepard writes to say that Collins have told him about a new book by Margery Sharp about mice (published as The Rescuers in 1959), and asks “would you like me to write and suggest you should illustrate it... Collins do not pay a lot, but you would escape your agent’s fees and get back your originals (by being firm)” (6th September 1958). But the relationship goes deeper than just one of mentorship. When Baynes was expe- riencing personal troubles in 1958, Shepard wrote, “I can’t help worrying about your troubles and wondering if the thing has already descended on you, or is about to de- scend. You said you would let us know if the worst happened and I am quite prepared to come to your aid at any time of the day or night. A telephone call or a telegram will rouse this household to instant action” (14th April 1958). Later that year, he tries to invite her up to London to cheer her up, “I can’t bear to think of you crying alone in the garden, if only I could have been there then you could have cried on my shoulder. My dear I know its been a very sad time for you and I’d do anything to help cheer you up” (23rd October 1958). [41482] £9,500 An engaging, illuminating and highly personal correspondence, revealing the close relationship between two of the foremost illustrators of the last century, E. H. Shepard and Pauline Baynes. It links two illustrators that provided unsurpassed drawings for their major commissions, be it Winnie The Pooh and The Wind In The Willows for Shepard, or the Chronicles Of Narnia for Baynes. All of the letters, signed “Kip”, Shepard’s nickname from art school days, attest to the closeness of their friendship. They met in the 1950s, and Baynes became close friends with both Shepard and his wife Norah, aided by the fact that they only lived 15 miles apart. While their friendship, and Shepard’s mentorship of Baynes, has been acknowledged in writing about both illustrators, hitherto it hasn’t received more than a passing mention. These letters reveal a much deeper relationship than previously thought, and they provide great detail on its development through the 1950s and ‘60s. The letters remain unpublished and unconsulted by scholars. The only mention of them in print that can be traced is in Elaine Moss’s 1978 profile ‘Pauline Baynes: Mistress Of The Margin’ in which she recalls pulling the letter from July 1965 from Baynes’s copy of Brock And Ben , but quotes only one sentence from the letter. PROVENANCE: Pauline Baynes (1922-2008), sold at Bloomsbury Auctions, August 2008; Pat McInally (1953-) noted collector of Winnie The Pooh material.
79
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter maker