Part 18
First Acquaintance with Dickens--Designs an Illustration for "THE CRICKET ON THE HEARTH"--Elected a Royal Academician--Receives the Honour of Knighthood--Declines the Presidency of the Royal Academy--Severe Illness and Death.
Charles Dickens first became acquainted with Sir Edwin Henry Landseer during the "Nickleby" period, and ever entertained the highest admiration and personal regard for this famous artist, to whom Thackeray once referred as "a sort of aristocrat among painters." Sir Edwin was an artist by hereditary right and family instinct, being the eldest son of the well-known engraver, John Landseer, A.R.A. He was born in London in 1802, and at the age of thirteen exhibited two pictures at the Royal Academy, thus proving that he possessed most exceptional powers as a draughtsman even at this early period.
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[Sidenote: =The Cricket on the Hearth, 1846.=]
It is perhaps not generally remembered that Sir Edwin Landseer has a just claim to be numbered among the Illustrators of Dickens. Though he made but a single design, it is indubitably a masterpiece, and suffices to indicate the admirable skill acquired by this great painter in depicting what may be considered his favourite subject--the dog. The charming little woodcut of "Boxer"--the irrepressible companion of John Peerybingle, in "The Cricket on the Hearth"--defies criticism.
PLATE LIII
SIR JOHN TENNIEL, R.I.
From a Photograph by
MESSRS. BASSANO
_Lent by the Artist._
SIR EDWIN LANDSEER, R.A.
From the Painting by
SIR FRANCIS GRANT, P.R.A.
The dog's head was added by Sir Edwin himself.
In 1825, Sir Edwin (then Mr.) Landseer was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy, and five years later he attained the full honours, from which date might be chronicled a long and regular catalogue of pictures exhibited by him, year by year, either at the British Institution or on the walls of the Royal Academy. In 1850 he received the honour of Knighthood, and, at the death of Sir Charles Eastlake in 1865, was offered the Presidency of the Royal Academy,--a distinction which he could not be induced to accept. In 1871 a severe illness paralysed his powerful pencil; from this illness the artist never recovered, and two years later the mournful intelligence of his death was announced, his mortal remains being interred in St. Paul's Cathedral. In private life Sir Edwin was one of the most kind and courteous of men and warmest of friends,--qualities of mind and heart which endeared him to all with whom he came in contact.
SAMUEL PALMER
A Self-taught Artist--Exhibits at the British Institution and the Royal Academy--Marriage with John Linnell's Daughter--Visits Italy--His Sketches of Italian Scenery--Elected an Associate, and afterwards a Member, of the Society of Painters in Water-Colours--An Etcher and Draughtsman on Wood--His Designs for "PICTURES FROM ITALY"--A Letter from Dickens--The Artist's Method of Work--The Villa D'Este--His Drawings Difficult to Reproduce--Elaborate Instructions to Engravers--Literature a Favourite Amusement--Fondness for Reading Aloud--Admires the Novels of Dickens--Illness and Death.
During Charles Dickens's very brief connection with the _Daily News_, at the time of its foundation in 1846, he contributed to its columns a series of "Travelling Sketches," descriptive of his experiences in Italy, and of his impressions concerning the scenery, institutions, and social aspects of the people in that beautiful country. Shortly after the publication of the concluding paper, these "Sketches" were re-issued in book form, under the title of "Pictures from Italy," with vignette illustrations on wood by Samuel Palmer.
PLATE LIV
F. W. TOPHAM
From a Photograph by
MESSRS. ELLIOTT & FRY
_Lent by Mr. F. W. W. Topham._
SAMUEL PALMER
From a Photograph
_Lent by Mr. A. H. Palmer._
Samuel Palmer, who was born in Newington, London, in 1805, was to a great extent a self-taught artist, his first successes dating from his fourteenth year, when he was represented by two pictures at the British Institution and three at the Royal Academy, his work from that time being frequently seen at one or the other gallery. In 1837 (that is, while "Pickwick" was in course of publication) he married the eldest daughter of John Linnell, the famous portrait and landscape painter, leaving England soon afterwards with his young wife for Italy. Here they stayed two years--years of such persistent and enthusiastic study that the sketches and elaborate drawings of some of the finest Italian scenery which the artist brought back, very numerous though they were, are no measure of the influence which the sojourn in the land of his favourite poet, Virgil, had upon his after-life and upon his artistic labours.
Samuel Palmer is chiefly remembered by his charming water-colour drawings, but it seems that in his early years he preferred painting in oils, whence he afterwards gradually drifted into the use of the former medium, his election as Associate of the Society of Painters in Water-Colours in 1843[43] determining his future career. He was a most successful etcher, his plates being admired by the _connoisseur_ for the beauty of _technique_ therein displayed. Concerning his efforts with the needle, Mr. P. G. Hamerton says that Samuel Palmer was one of the most accomplished etchers who ever lived, and that "there is more feeling, and insight, and knowledge in one twig drawn by his hand than in the life's production of many a well-known artist."[44] It must be admitted, however, that the occasional drawings executed by him for the wood-engraver do not indicate equal ability as a draughtsman on wood. In early days he actually attempted, in emulation of his intimate friend Edward Calvert, to engrave upon wood some of his own designs, this fact testifying to the extraordinary influence exercised by William Blake over the contemporary work of such young artists as Palmer, Calvert, and the rest of the "Ancients," as they jocosely dubbed themselves.
Footnote 43: Palmer was elected a Member of this Society in 1854.
Footnote 44: "Etching and Etchers," 3rd edition, 1880.
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[Sidenote: =Pictures from Italy, 1846.=]
The first drawings executed upon the wood-block by Palmer and intended as book-illustrations were apparently the designs for "Pictures from Italy;" these are four in number, representing the Street of the Tombs, Pompeii; the Villa D'Este at Tivoli, from the Cypress Avenue; the Colosseum of Rome; and a Vineyard Scene. One of the artist's memorandum-books contains an entry recording the receipt from the publishers of twenty guineas for these drawings. Samuel Palmer and Charles Dickens were never on terms of intimacy; however the acquaintance originated has never transpired, nor does the artist's son, Mr. A. H. Palmer, remember his father ever referring to the subject. It is probable that the novelist's attention had been directed to Palmer's excellent rendering of Italian scenery, which had attracted considerable notice among artists, and that, having met him, he found a degree of warm enthusiasm for that scenery which was so unusual, that he felt convinced that the illustrating of the "Pictures" could not be placed in better hands. Palmer accepted the commission, but, like all his drawings that were destined to be engraved on wood, it somewhat perplexed him, for reasons presently to be explained. A correspondence of a formal business character ensued, and of the few letters still extant I am enabled to print the following, which endorses the belief that an interview had taken place between author and artist.
"DEVONSHIRE TERRACE, _Wednesday, Thirteenth May, 1846_.
"DEAR SIR,--I beg to assure you that I would on no account dream of allowing the book to go to press without the insertion of your name in the title-page. I placed it there myself, two days ago.
"I have not seen the designs, but I have no doubt whatever (remembering your sketches) that they are very good.
"Dear sir, faithfully yours,
"CHARLES DICKENS.
"SAMUEL PALMER, Esq."
Two of the woodcuts, viz., those printed on the first and last pages of the little book, were designed to allow the text to be dropped in. Sketches (or rather finished drawings) were made on paper before the subjects were copied by the artist upon the wood-blocks, which drawings, by the way, are much inferior to the artist's water-colours of the same or similar subjects. It seems evident, from the word "On" being tentatively introduced at the top of the original sketch of the Villa D'Este, that this illustration was at first intended to be placed at the beginning of the chapter entitled "Going through France," instead of appearing (as it eventually did) in conjunction with the opening lines of the preliminary chapter,--"The Reader's Passport." It was apparently Palmer's proposal to insert on the block a decorative letter "S," but Dickens, in a letter to the artist, says, "I am afraid I cannot comfortably manage an S. What do you say to the word 'On'? Could you possibly do that?"
With regard to the treatment of these illustrations, there is no doubt that they are faithful representations of Nature, adapted from sketches made on the spot. As a matter of fact, it was directly contrary to the artist's habit and principles to transcribe a sketch detail for detail. Although the character of his drawing was somewhat involved, rendering more difficult the work of the engraver, the woodcuts (which bear no signature) are most carefully executed. Notwithstanding this, Mr. A. H. Palmer assures me that these designs, and the rendering of them by the wood-engraver, were not of a kind to which the artist could look back with much satisfaction.
Mr. A. H. Palmer still retains in his possession a drawing on wood by his father of the Villa D'Este, the second illustration in "Pictures from Italy," which was apparently discarded because the artist had omitted to reverse his design, and therefore could not be properly adapted to the particular page for which it was prepared. Those who are familiar with the freedom and vigour of Samuel Palmer's work from Nature will realise at a glance that he was not at his ease upon wood. In the margin of this drawing the artist pencilled the following instructions to the engraver, who had not entirely succeeded in producing the more subtle effects:--
"I wish the thin cypress to be very much as it _appears upon the block_--not lighter. Now that the trees have been darkened, it will be necessary to leave the lines of the building _quite_ as thick as they are drawn, letting them gradually gain more strength as they come downwards towards the steps. The degree of sharpness with which the drawing terminates toward the letterpress is just what I wish."
From this and the following notes, minutely written upon the two retouched proofs of the engraving of this subject, we discover how very much too sanguine the artist was as to the result of the translation of his work, the voluminous directions clearly indicating his solicitude respecting the treatment of microscopic details in his design, the alleged importance of which would be quite beyond the comprehension of an ordinary engraver. Palmer subsequently learnt by experience that his drawing on wood was practically untranslatable as he preferred to offer it for engraving.
_MS. Notes on the First Proof._
"(1.) In both proofs the top of the cypress is very indistinct, which greatly injures the design.
"(2.) From A to B the illuminated side of the cypress has lost its tint in both impressions, which is ruinous to the effect, as the eye can no longer follow it as a simple object distinct from the building from the top to the bottom of the design. The top of the building, too, in both impressions, is nearly invisible, as if the inking had failed. It is very important that this should be rectified, so as not to appear in the printing of the work, as otherwise it will spoil the whole work. I have worked upon building and cypress a little in pencil to show how they ought to have come even in a faint impression.
"(3.) Opposite this mark the light on the cypress stems has been carried down a little lower, and two or three fine threads of light have been introduced into the shadowed side (which are intended to be scarcely perceptible) to remove a blottiness in the dark.
"(4.) The touches on the steps, the statue, and the whole of the lower part of the trees and ground, though not very numerous, are very important to the finish of the foreground.
PLATE LV
"THE VILLA D'ESTE"
_Facsimile_ of an Original Design for "Pictures from Italy" by SAMUEL PALMER
_Lent by Mr. A. H. Palmer._
"(5.) The darkest lines in the great vase have been thinned in the _slightest degree_.
"(6.) Close to C the thickness of a black line on the edge of the cypress has been split.
"(7.) From E down to F a minute speck of light has here and there been inserted on the outline of the cypress foliage to split some blots of dark which will be seen on the untouched proofs, and which were rather harsh.
"(8.) The light flashing on the steps ought to make thinner without removing the outline of the arm of the statue. The foot resting upon the pedestal should be indicated. The action of the other leg thrown back is shown in the retouching by the removal of the black line.
"(9.) The getting the upper part of the slender cypress of as full a tint as I have given it here seems to me so important that if it can be done in no other way, I think a piece should be inserted into the block to effect it. In the drawing on the block it was like this, which I have retouched with pencil."
_Second Proof._
"(1.) Opposite are a few touches on the slender cypress--two very thin lines of light on the stem. Specks of light on the foliage.
"(2.) There is a thick black line on the block, thus [Symbol: left-bowing arc] which I have here crossed with specks of white; although it is in the body of the tree, it kills the fine work on the Villa.
"(3.) The thickness of outline on the light side of this vase unfinishes the foreground. I have altered it.
"(4.) The thick outline on this leaf unfinishes everything about it."
* * * * *
Thus we discover how fastidious to a degree was the artist in his desire that every subtle touch of his poetic pencil should be reproduced--a result which, as he quickly perceived, it was impossible to achieve.
Samuel Palmer took a still keener delight in Literature than he did in Art. An insatiable but punctilious reader, the novels of Dickens and Scott were among the very few works of fiction which he read aloud to members of his own household. Mr. A. H. Palmer informs me that he has known his father to be so engrossed by reading aloud one of Dickens's finer and more exciting passages, that the announcement and entry of a visitor served to stop the reading only for a few moments; the crisis past, he laid down the book and apologised. Literature, indeed, constituted the chief pleasure of his simple life--a life that, at one period at least, would have been almost insupportable without the consolation afforded by books. Early in May, 1881, he became, alas! too ill to work, and on the twenty-fourth of that month he passed peacefully away, leaving behind him a reputation which is blameless.
F. W. TOPHAM
Illustrations for "A CHILD'S HISTORY OF ENGLAND"--Begins Life as a Writing-Engraver--Designs for Books--Exhibits at the Royal Academy--Elected an Associate of the New Society of Painters--Retires from the Society--Elected a Member of the Old Society of Painters in Water-Colours--First Visit to Spain--Fatal Illness--Some Pictures Inspired by Dickens's Stories--Histrionic Ability--The Artist as a Juggler.
[Sidenote: =A Child's History of England, 1852-53-54.=]
During the years 1851-52-53, there appeared in the pages of _Household Words_ one of Charles Dickens's less familiar writings, "A Child's History of England." On its completion as a serial, the little work was issued in three 16mo volumes, each containing a frontispiece by F. W. Topham. These illustrations were engraved on wood, each consisting of a circular design, printed in black, and surrounded by an ornamental border of a light mauve colour, the latter enclosing familiar scenes from English History, viz., Alfred in the Neatherd's Cot; Canute reproving his Courtiers; Edwy and Elgiva; Eleanor and Fair Rosamond. The decorative border with its four _tableaux_ remained unchanged, but the subject of the central illustration varied, that in the first volume depicting a girl reading to two children; in the second, Alfred the Great receiving instruction in reading from his mother, Queen Osburgha; while in the third there is a more modern representation of a similar incident.
Francis William Topham, who was born at Leeds in 1808, enjoyed the privilege of being numbered among the personal friends of Charles Dickens. He entered professional life as a writing-engraver, and his first design was for a label required by a well-known firm of pin manufacturers. From this modest beginning he advanced to more artistic work, and was soon busily engaged in engraving plates for pocket-books, &c. During the several years he was thus occupied he engraved many original designs for book-illustrations, and in 1832 began to exhibit pictures; his works after this date being frequently seen at the Royal Academy and other London galleries. In 1842 he was elected an Associate of the New Society of Painters in Water-Colours, of which body he became a full member in the following year. He, with several other members, left the New Society after a comparatively short time, and was immediately elected into the Old Society of Painters in Water-Colours--the present Royal Water-Colour Society--to the Exhibitions of which the majority of his more important productions were contributed. It was in Spain, whither he first went in 1852-53, that he found subjects most congenial to his tastes, and there, in that land of sunny skies, he was seized with a fatal illness in 1877, expiring at Cordova on March 31st of that year.
Topham was a great admirer of the works of Charles Dickens, and selected from them the subjects of some of his most successful pictures. One of these--a water-colour drawing executed in 1851--illustrates a scene in "Barnaby Rudge," where children flock round the half-witted hero as he and his mother pass through her native village; the drawing was presented by the artist to Dickens, and realised at the sale of the novelist's effects the sum of £115, 10s. This picture was followed by another from "The Old Curiosity Shop," representing Little Nell and her Grandfather in the tent, making bouquets for the racecourse, which was also a gift to Dickens, being subsequently disposed of at the above-mentioned sale for £288, 15s. It is also recorded that the artist, in 1856, produced a drawing portraying "Little Nell in the Churchyard," which some five years after the novelist's death found a purchaser for £325, 10s.
F. W. Topham proved a welcome addition to Dickens's company of distinguished amateur actors, and concerning his histrionic ability the artist's son, Mr. Frank W. W. Topham (himself an eminent painter), thus writes: "My father had, from quite a young man, a great love of acting, at which he was considered unusually good. One of my earliest recollections of a play was one acted at the St. James's Theatre, in which my father, Sir John Tenniel, the late Francis Holl, A.R.A. (the engraver), and others took part, for the benefit of the Artists' Benevolent Fund. I do not know if my father owed his introduction to Dickens to his acting, but have an impression that he did,--certainly it was the cause of their after intimacy."
_Apropos_ of their "splendid strolling," and the fun incidental thereto, Dickens observed to his wife, in a letter dated from Clifton, November 13, 1851: "I forgot to say that Topham has suddenly come out as a juggler, and swallows candles, and does wonderful things with the poker very well indeed, but with a bashfulness and embarrassment extraordinarily ludicrous."
MARCUS STONE, R.A.
The Artist's Boyish Admiration of Dickens's Stories--His Delineation of Jo, the Crossing-Sweeper--A Present and a Letter from Dickens--First Success as a Painter--Death of his Father--Desires to Become an Illustrator of Books--Befriended by Dickens--Initial Attempt at Drawing upon Wood--Frontispiece for the First Cheap Edition of "Little Dorrit"--The Artist's _Début_ as a Black-and-White Draughtsman--His Designs for "OUR MUTUAL FRIEND"--The Pictorial Wrapper--Suggestions from Dickens--Portrait of Silas Wegg--Preliminary Sketches for the Illustrations--Valuable Hints for the Artist--Realism in his Designs--The Prototype of Mr. Venus--Photography upon Wood--Defective Engraving--Sale of the Original Sketches--Illustrations for Cheap Editions--Relinquishes Black-and-White Drawing--Elected a Royal Academician--Popularity of his Pictures--Intimacy with Dickens--Private Theatricals.
It will be remembered that "A Tale of Two Cities," the last of Dickens's novels containing Hablôt Browne's designs, was succeeded by "Our Mutual Friend," the initial number of which appeared on May 1, 1864. In this story Dickens repeated an early experience in having woodcut illustrations instead of the customary etchings, availing himself of the services of an artist whose style and method of work differed very considerably from those of "Phiz." The new recruit was Mr. Marcus Stone, who now holds high rank among Royal Academicians.
PLATE LVI
MARCUS STONE, R.A.
From a Photograph specially taken for this Work by
JAMES HYATT
As the son of the novelist's cherished friend, Frank Stone, A.R.A., who partly illustrated "The Haunted Man," Mr. Marcus Stone was brought by force of circumstances into early communication with the author of "Pickwick." Born in 1840, he soon indicated by his _penchant_ for Art that he inherited his father's talent, becoming in course of time a painter even more distinguished; for Frank Stone did not live to attain full honours of the Royal Academy. Mr. Marcus Stone proudly confesses that, even as a mere lad, Charles Dickens's romances proved most fascinating to him, and he recalls an interesting incident as evidence of this influence. When, in 1852-53, the dramatic story of "Bleak House" appeared in serial form, he eagerly read each number as it came out, and was much attracted by the novelist's rendering of Jo, the crossing-sweeper, being quick to perceive the artistic capabilities of the scenes in which that pathetic character is introduced. In the eleventh chapter a specially touching reference is made to the poor outcast--that memorable occasion when he softly sweeps the step of the gateway leading to the loathsome graveyard in which was buried the man who had been "wery good" to him. Dickens's vivid description of the weird picture at once induced Marcus Stone (then twelve years of age) to try his hand at depicting it with his pencil. While so engaged the novelist entered the room, and, looking over his shoulder, he immediately recognised the subject of the sketch, whereupon he encouragingly observed, "Well, now, that is very good. You will have to give that to me." Accordingly, on completion, the little drawing was sent to Tavistock House.[45] About a year afterwards the young artist received a copy of "A Child's History of England," containing the author's autograph, and accompanied by the following note, dated December 19, 1853:--