Last Easter I posted here a few
of the ink drawings I had done many years ago on
the life of Jesus and lo, Nicolas McDowall saw them,
declared them to be good and decided to publish
the whole suite as a book.
And
behold, with perfect timing, the latest Old Stile
Press publication Scenes
from the Life of Jesus is ready and glowing:
my ancient drawings resurrected in
a stunningly designed and hand-printed by Nicolas
book. The intense blue-black lines
inhabit the pristine white space of the paper
as if they were born there while the minimal
text in pale grey and blue Aries type acts as
a whispered accompaniment. You can read all about
it on the
Old
Stile Press blog and the book's pages
and close-ups are in a slide-show at the main
website of the Press, linked above. Concerning the subject, this is
what I wrote as the foreword to the book:
I went to Wales this week to sign the 60 copies of the book and stayed overnight at Frances and Nicolas McDowall's marvellous home, a place so magical that even if it was not also the site of their Old Stile Press, it would be stored in my memory as one of the most inspiring places I have ever been privileged to visit. The inside of the house blends seamlessly with the outside and in both, every corner yields a discovery, a lovingly tended treasure. The McDowalls have an extraordinary art collection, mainly of neo-romantic English art, but also some idiosyncratic pieces dotted around the grounds, such as the slabs of slate engraved with Pilgrims of Solitude a poem by Cecil Collins. The sculpture framed by the living room window is by Michael Ayrton.
However you celebrate this resurgence of Spring, have a beautiful weekend.
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