Posted by Eric Abraham on February 17, 2002 at 14:37:49 from 199.240.138.72:
This probably relates somewhat to the previous thread, but on a slightly different tack, so I will open as a new subject. In Peter Duck the introduction states that the Swallows and Amazons illustrated the story. The illustrations, I know were actually done be Mr. Ransome; but, I am curious about the state of art education in England at the time of this story. Would they have had any instruction in drawing or "visual expression" in the schools they attended, or would they have been totally on their own for learning any visual interpretation skills. In some of the other books, Titty is responsible for drawing and illustrating various documents and maps. I do know that in the United States, in the late ninteenth and early twentieth century, drawing was taught as a method of empirical observation in many schools; was this the case in England? I know that the while the UK has had many excellent Art Schools on the college and university level for many years, I am wondering about the state of art education on the elementary level in the twenties and thirties.