Edmund Dulac (born
Edmond Dulac, October 22, 1882 – May 25, 1953) was a
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
book illustrator prominent during the so called "Golden Age of Illustration (the first quarter or so of the twentieth century).
Born in
ToulouseToulouse is a city in southwest France on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. With 1,102,882 inhabitants as of Jan...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
, he began his career by studying law at the University of Toulouse, but also followed classes in the Ecole des Beaux Arts, switching full time to art after he became bored with law, and also having won prizes at the Ecole des Beaux Arts.
Edmund Dulac (born
Edmond Dulac, October 22, 1882 – May 25, 1953) was a
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
book illustrator prominent during the so called "Golden Age of Illustration (the first quarter or so of the twentieth century).
Early life and career
Born in
ToulouseToulouse is a city in southwest France on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. With 1,102,882 inhabitants as of Jan...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
, he began his career by studying law at the University of Toulouse, but also followed classes in the Ecole des Beaux Arts, switching full time to art after he became bored with law, and also having won prizes at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. He spent a very brief period at the
Académie JulianThe Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. At the time, the government sanctioned art school of France, École des Beaux-Arts, did not allow women to enroll...
in Paris in 1904 before moving to London.
In London, the 22-year old Frenchman was picked up by J.M. Dent and given a commission to illustrate the collected works of the
BrontëThe Brontë sisters , Charlotte , Emily and Anne , were English writers of the 1840s and 1850s...
sisters. He then began an association with the Leicester Gallery and
Hodder & StoughtonHodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hodder Headline.The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged fourteen, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publisher for the Congregational Union...
; the gallery would commission paintings from Dulac and then sell the rights to Hodder & Stoughton, who would publish the books (one book a year over many years) while the gallery would sell the paintings. Books produced under this arrangement by Dulac include
Stories from The Arabian Nights (1907) (including 50 colour images), an edition of Shakespeare's
The Tempest (1908) (including 40 colour images), of
The Rubaiyat"Rubāʿī" is Arabic for "quatrain", and is used to describe a Persian quatrain, or its derivative form in English and other languages. The plural form of the word, rubāʿiyāt , is used to describe a collection of such quatrains.There are a number of possible rhyme schemes to the rubaiyat form, e.g....
of Omar KhayyamOmar Khayyám , , was a Persian polymath, mathematician, philosopher, astronomer and poet. He also wrote treatises on mechanics, geography, music and was a physicist....
(1909) (including 20 colour images),
The Sleeping BeautySleeping Beauty is a fairy tale classic, the first in the set published in 1697 by Charles Perrault, Contes de ma Mère l'Oye ....
and Other Fairy Tales (1910),
Stories from Hans Christian AndersenHans Christian Andersen was a Danish author and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", "The Snow Queen", "The Little Mermaid", "Thumbelina", "The Little Match Girl", and the "The Ugly Duckling".During his lifetime he was acclaimed for having delighted...
(1911),
The Bells and Other Poems by Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe was an American writer, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the...
(1912) (including 28 colour images and many monotone illustrations) and
Princess Badoura (1913). During
World War IWorld War I , also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Wars, was a global military conflict which involved most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance...
he contributed to relief books, including
King AlbertAlbert I was the third King of the Belgians from 1909 until 1934.-Early life:Born Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad in Brussels, he was the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders, and his wife, Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen...
's Book,
Princess MaryThe Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood was a member of the British Royal Family the third child and only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. She was the sixth holder of the title of Princess Royal...
's Gift Book, and, unusually, his own
Edmund Dulac's Picture Book for the French Red Cross (1915) (including 20 colour images). Hodder and Stoughton also published
The Dreamer of Dreams (1915) (including 6 colour images) - a work composed by the then
Queen of RomaniaMarie of Edinburgh was Queen of Romania as spouse of King Ferdinand of Romania.-Early life:...
.
Dulac became a naturalized British Citizen on Feb 17 1912.
In 1995, Ann Hughey compiled a bibliography -
Edmund Dulac - His Book Illustrations: A Bibliography, which lists over 800 editions of works that include illustrations by Edmund Dulac.
Later life
After the war, the deluxe edition illustrated book became a rarity and Dulac's career in this field was over. His last such books were
Edmund Dulac's Fairy Book (1916), the
Tanglewood TalesTanglewood Tales for Boys and Girls is a book by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, a sequel to A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys...
(1918) (including 14 colour images) and the exquisite
The Kingdom of the Pearl (1920). His career continued in other areas however, including newspaper caricatures (especially at
The Outlook), portraiture, theatre costume and set design, bookplates, chocolate boxes, medals, and various graphics (especially for The
Mercury TheatreThe Mercury Theatre was a theatre company founded in New York City in 1937 by Orson Welles and John Houseman. After a string of live theatrical productions, in 1938 the Mercury Theatre progressed into their best-known period as The Mercury Theatre on the Air, a radio series that included one of the...
). He designed
postage stampA postage stamp is adhesive paper evidence of a fee paid for postal services. Usually a small rectangle attached to an envelope, the stamp signifies the person sending it has fully or partly paid for delivery...
s for
Great BritainGreat Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island. With a population of about 59.6 million people, it is the third most populated island on Earth. Great Britain is surrounded by over 1000 smaller...
.. He designed stamps (Marianne de Londres series) and banknotes for Free France during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. In early 40s Edmund Dulac prepared also the project of Polish 20 zlotych note for the Bank of Poland (Bank Polski). This banknote (printed in England in 1942 but dated 1939) was ordered by Polish Governement in Exile and was never issued. He also produced illustrations for
The American WeeklyThe American Weekly was a United States magazine published by the Hearst Corporation from November 1, 1896 until 1966. It served as a Sunday newspaper supplement which published many sensationalist stories, resulting in it having been compared to the National Enquirer. It was initially named The...
, a Sunday supplement belonging to the
HearstHearst may refer to:people* Amanda Hearst* Garrison Hearst, NFL running back* George Hearst* George Randolph Hearst Jr.* Hunter Hearst Helmsley, WWE Professional wrestler* John Randolph Hearst* Lydia Hearst-Shaw* Michael Hearst* Millicent Hearst...
newspaper chain in
AmericaThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Britain's
Country Life. Country Life Limited (London) published
Gods and Mortals in Love (1935) (including 9 colour images) based on a number of the contributions made by Dulac to
Country Life previously.
The Daughter of the Stars (1939) was a further publication to benefit from Dulac's artwork - due to constraints related to the outbreak of World War II, that title included just 2 colour images. He continued to produce books for the rest of his life, more so than any of his contemporaries, although these were less frequent and less lavish than during the Golden Age.
Half way through his final book commission (Milton's
ComusIn Greek mythology, Comus or Komos is the god of festivity, revels and nocturnal dalliances. He is a son and a cup-bearer of the god Bacchus. Comus represents anarchy and chaos. His mythology occurs in the later times of antiquity. During his festivals in Ancient Greece, men and women exchanged...
) Dulac died of a heart attack on 25th May 1953.
External links