Raymond Sheppard (3 March 1913 – 21 April 1958) was a British artist and illustrator of books for children and adults. He wrote books on drawing techniques, but is best known for his illustrations of
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...
's 1952 novel ''
The Old Man and the Sea
''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cayo Blanco (Cuba), and published in 1952. It was the last major work of fiction written by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. O ...
'' and the works of
Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
.
Life
Sheppard was born on 3 March 1913,
and was educated at
Christ's College, Finchley
Christ's College is a secondary school with academy status in East Finchley, London, United Kingdom. It falls under the London Borough of Barnet Local Education Authority for admissions. Since September 2018, Christ’s College Finchley has off ...
. From childhood he had a love of nature, from his time playing in
Scratchwood
Scratchwood is an extensive, mainly wooded, country park in Mill Hill in the London Borough of Barnet. The 57-hectare site is a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation and together with the neighbouring Moat Mount Open Space. It ...
in Mill Hill, north-west London, to his time spent in
London Zoo sketching live animals.
[ He studied art at Bolt Court under S.G. Boxsius and from October 1940 to January 1946 served as a ]Leading Aircraftsman
Leading aircraftman (LAC) or leading aircraftwoman (LACW) is a junior rank in some air forces. It sits between aircraftman and senior aircraftman, and has a NATO rank code of OR-2. The rank badge is a horizontal two-bladed propeller. The ran ...
in the RAF.[
He became a Fellow of the Zoological Society (F.Z.S, 1946); and a member of the Society of Graphic Artists (S.G.A, 1947), the Pastel Society (P.S., 1948), and the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (R.I, 1949).
In the 1940s Sheppard wrote and illustrated a number of books for ''The Studio'' magazine, explaining techniques on how to draw birds and zoo animals. This was followed by a successful career as a story illustrator for ''Lilliput'', as well as for leading authors of the day such as ]Enid Blyton
Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have b ...
and Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
.[ He is best known for his original illustrations of '']The Old Man and the Sea
''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cayo Blanco (Cuba), and published in 1952. It was the last major work of fiction written by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. O ...
'' by Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...
that he was commissioned to produce at the same time as Charles Tunnicliffe
Charles Frederick Tunnicliffe, Order of the British Empire, OBE, Royal Academy of Arts, RA (1 December 1901 – 7 February 1979) was an internationally renowned naturalistic painter of British birds and other wildlife. He spent most of his work ...
. The published version contained illustrations from both artists. He was also a founding member of the Wapping Group of Artists, officially launched in 1946.
Sheppard had a long battle with cancer from 1945 until his death in 1958.[
]
Memberships
* Royal Academy of Arts (R.A.)
* Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (R.I.)
* Royal Society of Arts (R.S.A.)
* Wapping Group of Artists (Founder Member)
* Chelsea Arts Club
The Chelsea Arts Club is a private members' club at 143 Old Church Street in Chelsea, London with a membership of over 3,800, including artists, sculptors, architects, writers, designers, actors, musicians, photographers, and filmmakers. The club ...
* The Pastel Society (1948)Zoological Society of London
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) is a charity devoted to the worldwide conservation of animals and their habitats. It was founded in 1826. Since 1828, it has maintained the London Zoo, and since 1931 Whipsnade Park.
History
On 29 ...
(Fellow)
Publications
Sheppard's work was used in publications including '' Lilliput'', ''The Studio'', ''Picture Post
''Picture Post'' was a photojournalistic magazine published in the United Kingdom from 1938 to 1957. It is considered a pioneering example of photojournalism and was an immediate success, selling 1,700,000 copies a week after only two months. ...
'', ''John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of the United Kingdom in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter- ...
'' and '' Everybody's''.
As author
* ''How to Draw Birds'' (Studio, 1940)
* ''Drawing at the Zoo'' (Studio, 1949)
* ''More Birds to Draw'' (Studio, 1956)
As illustrator
* ''The Rolling Year'' (W. J. Blyton) (Blackie and Son, 1936)
* ''The Silent Hunter'' (Phyllis Briggs) (Blackie, 1939)
* '' Man-Eaters of Kumaon'' (Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
) (Oxford University Press, 1947)
* ''Tam Tain's Trout Book'' (Tam Tain) (W & R Chambers, 1947)
* ''The Man-eating Leopard of Rudraprayag'' (Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
) (Oxford University Press, 1948)
* ''The Adventures of Pip'' (Enid Blyton
Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have b ...
) (Sampson Low, 1948)
* ''More Adventures of Pip'' (Enid Blyton
Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have b ...
) (Sampson Low, 1948)
* ''Birds of Woodland and Hedgerow'' (Elizabeth Gould) (Blackie, 1950)
* ''The Old Man and the Sea
''The Old Man and the Sea'' is a novella written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in 1951 in Cayo Blanco (Cuba), and published in 1952. It was the last major work of fiction written by Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. O ...
'' (Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...
) (The Reprint Society, 1952)
* ''Iceblink'' (Rutherford Montgomery) (Hutchinson, 1952)
* ''The Temple Tiger and More Man-eaters of Kumaon'' (Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
) (Oxford University Press, 1954)
* ''The Island of Birds'' (Olivia FitzRoy) (Jonathan Cape, 1954)
* ''Tree Tops'' (Jim Corbett
Edward James Corbett (25 July 1875 – 19 April 1955) was a British hunter, tracker, naturalist, and author who hunted a number of man-eating tigers and leopards in the Indian subcontinent.
He held the rank of colonel in the British Indian ...
) (Oxford University Press, 1955)
* ''MINADO - The Devil Dog'' (Erle Wilson) (Andre Deutsch, 1955)
* ''Way for a Sailor'' (Peter Dawlish) (Oxford University Press, 1955)
* ''The Hunted Head'' (Olivia FitzRoy) (Jonathan Cape, 1956)
* ''The Constant Fisherman'' (Major H E Morritt) (A & C Black, 1957)
* ''Fire in the Flint'' (Wilfrid Robertson) (Basil Blackwell. Oxford, 1957)
* ''Tan. A Wild Dog'' ( Thomas C. Hinkle) (Collins, 1957)
* ''Seal Morning'' (Rowena Farre) (Hutchinson, 1957)
* ''Animal Doctor'' ( Laurence Meynell) (Oxford University Press, 1958)
* ''Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' ( Mark Twain) (Glasgow: Blackie & Son Limited, ?)
* ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' ( Mark Twain) (Glasgow: Blackie & Son Limited, ?)
HAMPTON ON PIKE FISHING by J hnFitzgerald Hampton London & Edinburgh:W & R. Chambers Limited, 1947
References
Further reading
* ''Raymond Sheppard – Capturing the Moment'' (Langford Press, 2009)
* ''Raymond Sheppard – Master Illustrator 1913–1958'' (Liss Fine Art. London, 2010)
External links
Raymond Sheppard Illustrator
(blog)
at (Paul) Liss Fine Art
The Wapping Group of Artists
at Wildlife Art Gallery
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheppard, Raymond
English illustrators
Fellows of the Zoological Society of London
1913 births
1958 deaths
Royal Air Force personnel of World War II
Royal Air Force airmen
British bird artists