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Watercolour Edwardian Knife Grinder by John Berry Mid-20th Century

Name: Watercolour Edwardian Knife Grinder by John Berry Mid-20th Century
Brand: John Berry
Rating: 5 (105 reviews)

$887.46List Price

About the Item

This is a beautiful watercolor which depicts an Edwardian traveling knife grinder, dating from the mid-20th century. The brightly colored watercolor features a knife grinder, sharpening knives in the street surrounded by curious children, signed lower left Berry. It is double framed in a simple golden frame which matches the background perfectly. There is an inscription at the back of the painting which confirms the name of the artist and further names which are difficult to decipher. Condition: In excellent condition, please see photos for confirmation. Dimensions in cm: Height 44 x width 55 x depth 3 - Frame Height 29 x width 38. Dimensions in inches: Height 1 foot, 5 inches x width 1 foot, 10 inches x depth 1 inch - Frame Height 11 inches x width 1 foot, 3 inches. John Berry John Berry was one of the stabile of artists who illustrated the Ladybird books, which have entertained generations of children at the same time as teaching them to read. Between 1961 and 1978 Berry illustrated some 35 books for Ladybird. These included the "People at Work" series, featuring jobs such as policeman, fireman, postman, potter, nurse, coal miner, farmer and engine driver. The series forms an almost complete record of British industry as it was at the time. He also illustrated all six books in the "Hannibal the hamster" series between 1976 and 1978, and publications such as Come to France, Come to Denmark, Come to Holland and Learning to Ride. John Leslie Berry was born in Hammersmith, south-west London, on June 9 1920. He was educated locally before, in 1934, being accepted by Hammersmith College of Art. From there he won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy but was unable to take it up owing to the outbreak of war – a disappointment that he never got over. Berry served as an official war artist attached to the Eighth Army in the Western Desert – some of his pictures were exhibited during wartime at the National Gallery in London, and are now in the Imperial War Museum. On the return of peace, he worked on various advertising campaigns, including, in 1951, the famous image for Esso of the "Tiger in your tank". He also became a prolific portrait painter, his subjects including the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh (for the Royal Artillery Regiment) and Lady Astor. Berry also provided a service for customers at Harrods, who would drop off photographs which he would then work up into oil paintings. He started his work for Ladybird in the late 1950s, working alongside the illustrators Frank Hampson, Charles Tunnicliffe and Harry Wingfield. He always maintained that this was his bread-and-butter money, as he had a family of five to support and the firm always paid promptly. The Ladybird Key Words Reading Scheme introduced the children Peter and Jane, and their dog Pat, who inhabited a prosperous, ordered world which had not yet encountered political correctness or multiculturalism. Jane helped Mum make the tea, while father and son did manly things with cars and toolkits. A preface for parents and teachers declared: "The full-colour illustrations have been designed to create a desirable attitude towards learning – by making every child eager to read each title. Thus, this attractive reading scheme embraces not only the latest findings in word frequency but also the natural interests and activities of happy children." Berry contributed to some of these books, among them Where We Go and Things We Like. He also illustrated many books and book covers for Corgi, Four Square, Panther, Penguin and Readers Digest. At the same time, Berry continued to produce portraits, almost all of which were worked up from photographs. A painting of the Princess of Wales was auctioned to raise money for Help the Aged in 1986, and two years later he painted her for the headquarters of the Royal Hussars at Tidworth, in Hampshire. Original Ladybird illustrations are now the target of collectors, with prices as high as £1,500 per picture. In 2004 there was an exhibition of Berry's and Martin Aitchison's work for Ladybird at the Simon Finch gallery in London. The following year there was a show of Berry's work at the NEC in Birmingham.

Creator:
John Berry (Painter)
Dimensions:
Height: 17.33 in (44 cm)Width: 21.66 in (55 cm)Depth: 1.19 in (3 cm)
Place of Origin:
United Kingdom
Period:
1950-1959
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1950
Condition:
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
Seller: R00061stDibs: LU950613676071

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