Crispin Fisher

I was away in July and popped into Carlisle, on my way home, where there is an incredible book shop. I emerged two hours later with many books. One on the top of the pile my daughter looked at and asked, 'Why did you buy that one?' looking puzzled. 

I said, 'sometimes it is just the end papers!' These are the scarlet endpapers of 'The Migration of Birds', written by ornithologist James Fisher and illustrated by his son Crispin Fisher (1949-1989). Published by 'The Bodley Head 1966. Then below are some of the delicate internal illustrations of birds, but oh! those endpapers!

Charles Keeping VIIII

 

Sometimes I fall in love and I have fallen for this octopus! and the many fish in Charles Keepings illustrations for The Sky Eater and other South Sea Tales by James Holding published in 1965 by Abelard-Schuman. The images here are all taken from the main story 'The Sky Eater, I couldn't love the drawings more and the use of the single colour. 

Charles Keeping VIII

'The Beginning of the Armadillos' written by Rudyard Kipling and illustrated by Charles Keeping published by MacMillon Children's Books in 1982.

Charles Keeping VII

 

The later images in this post about Alfie finds 'The Other Side of the World' by Charles Keeping look incredibly like Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000) the Austrian-born visual artist's colour and patterns, or some of  Wassily Kandinsky's (1866-1944) works. 

This book was published in 1968. 

Charles Keeping VI

 

With Charles Keepings signature wood grain and heightened textural drawing, combined with vivid colour and expressive line this is  Charles Keeping "Willie's Fire Engine" published in 1980 by Oxford University Press.

The image above reeks of 'old reekie' (Edinburgh) to me, and I wonder if Charles was up and used sketches of the city for this book.