Antony Jasper Maitland (born 17 June 1935) is a British children's author and illustrator active from the 1960s to early 1980s. During his career, Maitland drew for eleven Leon Garfield books and four books by

Ruth Ainsworth Ruth Gallard Ainsworth (16 October 1908 – 16 May 1984) was a British writer, of over seventy children's books and numerous radio scripts. Life Ainsworth was born in Manchester, in 1908, the second child (and first daughter) of Methodist mini ...

. For his drawings, Maitland won the 1961

Kate Greenaway Medal The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) ...

for ''Mrs. Cockle's Cat'' and was nominated for the same award in 1972 for ''The Ghost Downstairs''. With his own books, Maitland premiered with ''The Secret of the Shed'' in 1962 before releasing two additional books in the 1950s. Subsequent books by Maitland were ''Idle Jack'' in 1977 and ''Encore'' in 1984. Outside of literature, Maitland has worked in design throughout Europe and the Middle East.

Early life and education

On 17 June 1935, Maitland was born in Andover, Hampshire. Growing up, Maitland lived in Germany and East Asia. For his post-secondary education, Maitland graduated from a design course at the

West of England College of Art The University of the West of England (also known as UWE Bristol) is a public research university, located in and around Bristol, England. The institution was know as the Bristol Polytechnic in 1970; it received university status in 1992 and ...

in 1957.

Career

After working for the British Army from 1956 to 1958, Maitland toured Europe and the Middle East. In his early career, Maitland planned and created book jackets before he became a children's book illustrator. Maitland's illustrations first appeared in

Philippa Pearce Ann Philippa Pearce OBE (22 January 1920 – 21 December 2006) was an English author of children's books. Best known of them is the time-slip novel ''Tom's Midnight Garden'', which won the 1958 Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, as ...

's 1961 book titled ''Mrs. Cockle's Cat''. Throughout the 1960s to early 1980s, Maitland's drew for various authors. His drawing appearances during this time period included ten Leon Garfield books, one Garfield book co-written with David Proctor and four

books. In 1974, Maitland's drawings were displayed in a store at Hanover Square, London. For his own works, Maitland provided the illustrations for his four books from the early 1960s to the late 1970s. After the release of ''The Secret of the Shed'' in 1962, Maitland published two more books in the early 1960s before returning to writing with ''Idle Jack'' in 1977. In 1984, Maitland released a movable book about the theatre titled ''Encore''. Apart from illustrations, Maitland has worked in various design fields such as

furniture design Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fur ...

graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art whose activity consists in projecting visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdiscipli ...

and interior design. In entertainment, Maitland was a costume designer and

set designer Scenic design (also known as scenography, stage design, or set design) is the creation of theatrical, as well as film or television scenery. Scenic designers come from a variety of artistic backgrounds, but in recent years, are mostly trained ...

for an unreleased movie adaption of '' The Goose Girl'' by the Brothers Grimm. In Europe, Maitland worked for the

National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery may refer to: *National Portrait Gallery (Australia), in Canberra *National Portrait Gallery (Sweden), in Mariefred *National Portrait Gallery (United States), in Washington, D.C. *National Portrait Gallery, London, with s ...

and the Chamber of Horrors as part of

Madame Tussauds Madame Tussauds (, ) is a wax museum founded in 1835 by French wax sculptor Marie Tussaud in London, spawning similar museums in major cities around the world. While it used to be spelled as "Madame Tussaud's"; the apostrophe is no longer us ...

. For the Middle East, Maitland has experience as an architect and muralist while also working as a portrait painter for the Shah of Iran.

Designs and themes

For the writing style and

setting Setting may refer to: * A location (geography) where something is set * Set construction in theatrical scenery * Setting (narrative), the place and time in a work of narrative, especially fiction * Setting up to fail a manipulative technique to eng ...

of his works, Maitland focuses on the literary lettering. With his drawings, Maitland uses his early memories and incorporates them into a child's perspective. To create his illustrations, Maitland uses line art before applying a wash to them. In ''Stories by Shakespeare'', Maitland used watercolours in his drawings for

Geraldine McCaughrean Geraldine McCaughrean ( ; born 6 June 1951) is a British children's novelist. She has written more than 170 books, including ''Peter Pan in Scarlet'' (2004), the official sequel to ''Peter Pan'' commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital, t ...

's 1995 book.

Adaptions and awards

In 2011, ''Idle Jack'' was performed as a charity

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

North Muskham North Muskham is a village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England, close to the border with Lincolnshire. It is located between the River Trent and the A1 road, north of Newark-upon-Trent. The parish has a population of 943 (2001 censu ...

. The proceeds from the Maitland adaptation went to Save the Children. For his illustrations in ''Mrs. Cockle's Cat'', Maitland received the 1961

. In 1972, Maitland was nominated for the same award for his drawings in Garfield's book ''The Ghost Downstairs''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maitland, Antony 1935 births Kate Greenaway Medal winners British children's writers English furniture designers English graphic designers English interior designers English costume designers Set designers English architects English muralists Living people