Caring For Your Books

On Handling Books

Never take a book off a shelf by putting your finger on the top of the spine and pulling the book towards you – this damages the head-cap, which will eventually break off. Try and remove a book by either passing your hand over the top and gently pushing from the fore-edge or by

pushing the flanking books further forward so that you are able to wrap your hand around the spine of the book and firmly grasp each side. Ensure you support heavy books with the other hand underneath.

Excerpt from 

http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/c/caring-for-your-books-and-papers/

The Sleeping Beauty Theatre Book

Here's a snippet of my daughter's rendition of Sleeping Beauty. 

I thought this was apt as the news yesterday was dominated by the announcement of 

the Royal engagement. 

The Sleeping Beauty Theatre Book encourages fine motor skills, story telling 

and imagination in young to older children. 

A lovely gift for fans (of all ages), of Sleeping Beauty, and my illustrated story book 

The Fairytale Princess
The Sleeping Beauty Theatre Book

German Edition of 'Once Upon A Time; A History of Fairy Tales' by Marina Warner Released

From wicked queens, beautiful princesses, elves, monsters, and goblins to giants, glass slippers, poisoned apples, magic keys, and mirrors, the characters and images of fairy tales have cast a spell over readers and audiences, both adults and children, for centuries. These fantastic stories have travelled across cultural borders, and been passed on from generation to generation, ever-changing, renewed with each re-telling. Few forms of literature have greater power to enchant us and rekindle our imagination than a fairy tale. 

Cover art-work by Su Blackwell

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Once-Upon-Time-Short-History/dp/0198779852

www.amazon.de/Es-war-einmal-Magie-Märchen/dp/3150110440

Oh Dickens! Chatsworth House Commission

Back in the spring, I was invited to Chatsworth House to discuss ideas for their upcoming 

Christmas exhibition.

Jump forward to November 2017, and...

... Oh Dickens! It's Christmas opened to the public on Saturday. 

My commissioned installation 'Dickens's London' is on display in the house until 7th January. 

Based on old photgraphs of the streets, slums and Inns where Dickens drew his inspiration, are houses sculpted from each of his 16 novels, first published between 1836 - 1870.

'At times London took on a role of it's own, dominating Dickens's narrative like a character in it's own right'. (Excerpt taken from 'Dickens's Victorian London', by Alex Werner and Tony Williams.

Photographs of the work in situ

https://www.chatsworth.org/