We are thrilled to have acquired, through a very generous donation, a collection of around 200 of Edward Bawden’s original lino blocks. These form a selection from a larger group of blocks which have been shared with the Higgins, Bedford, home of a substantial Bawden collection (www.thehigginsbedford.org.uk).
The example shown here is the ‘Gnat and the Lion’ from his well-known illustrations for Aesop’s Fables, published in 1970 by Edward himself in editions of 50. For the publication, he illustrated nine of the fables. These followed a 1956 commission of ‘The Old Crab and The Young’ for the designer John Lewis for his book ‘A Handbook of Type and Illustration’.
It is wonderful to be able to compare the four hand-cut blocks with the finished print, and to admire the imagination and skill with which Edward brings a single multi-coloured image to life from the component layers.
We are in the process of cataloguing the images with the help of our team of volunteers, and look forward to including them in future exhibitions at the gallery.