Initial Research: Beatrix Potter

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 Before I look at children’s book illustrator from my country, I decided to research some famous illustrators that have could work with Korean watercolour style. One famous watercolour and children’s story writer-illustrator was Beatrix Potter, the creator of the well-known character ‘Peter Rabbit’ and many others. 


The Tale of Peter Rabbit (2004) by Beatrix Potter

 Beatrix Potter was noted for intricate watercolour and ink works (gouache in some cases) containing both elements from Realism and Fantasy elements. This was quite unique in her times, where if an animal were to be ‘humanised’ they behaved more like a human with an animal look while Potter’s animals were more animal-like with human abilities including being able to stand with two feet (The Collector, 2022). Perhaps this was why her works were effective for children; not only is her work visually attractive and something that could be seen in real life (due to her Realistic style), the whimsical nature and the fantastical touches captures and activates the child’s mind to think and imagine. Potter quotes her work process as:

‘What heaven can be more real than to retain the spirit-world of childhood, tempered and balanced by knowledge and common-sense…’ (Potter, B., 1897, cited in National Trust, n.d.).

As her works are based on animal characters it can be considered as an Aesop’s fable, and has a rabbit as the (main) protagonist like the story I am working with. Although I have yet to decide on the character design, Potter’s style is something I am researching into to see if it can be applicable to Korean watercolour styles. I believe that I will be utilising her type of colour palettes as it has a muted feeling with very specific point colours (none in some cases), which is quite similar to Korean watercolours and these muted colours are less aggressive for children. To proceed with this, I will be doing posts regarding medium research with different types of paints (watercolour, gouache and ink) and papers (watercolour paper and khadi paper).


References:

Bilclough, A. (2021) Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature. Edited by A. Bilclough. London: V&A Publishing.


Laws, E. (2021) Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature. Edited by A. Bilclough. London: V&A Publishing.


National Trust (n.d.) The stories behind the works of Beatrix Potter. Available from: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/discover/history/art-collections/the-stories-behind-the-works-of-beatrix-potter. (Accessed: 01 May 2023).

Potter, B. (2004) The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Available from: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/344233/the-tale-of-peter-rabbit-by-beatrix-potter/9780448435213/. (Accessed: 30 April 2023).

The Collector (2022) Beatrix Potter: The English Writer Behind Peter Rabbit. Available from: https://www.thecollector.com/beatrix-potter-writer-peter-rabbit/. (Accessed: 30 April 2023).

V&A Museum (n.d.) Beatrix Potter: a life drawing nature. Available from: https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/beatrix-potter-a-life-drawing-nature#slideshow=1352767354&slide=0. (Accessed: 30 April 2023).




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