Hans Christian Andersen III

                        Above: Clowns, sun and theater 1865

                                        Above: Gnomes and Ballerinas on a hoop 1859
                                            Below: Sunflower man 1848

                               Above: Brazilian newspaper man 1830 

I am still fascinated by the story of Hans Christian Andersen and his storytelling and paper cutting. He seems to have been a magical man and has great kindness written on his face. 

Apparently he was a great friend of Charles Dickens and often visited him in London. 

Charles Dickens son Henry wrote of one of these visits:

"a lovable and yet a somewhat uncommon and strange personality ... had one beautiful accomplishment, which was the cutting out in paper, with an ordinary pair of scissors, of lovely little figures of sprites and elves, gnomes, fairies and animals of all kinds which might well have stepped out of the pages of his books." 

Henry Dickens

These illustrations are from Amazing Paper Cuttings of Hans Christian Andersen by Beth Wagner Brust, Ticknor and Fields, New York 1994.