~Daniel Merriam~

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Daniel Merriam is a painter who was born on 1963
in York, Maine and grew up in Naples, Maine,
a rural town in central Maine.
He was one of seven children in an artistic family
and taught himself to paint at an early age.
He studied mechanical and architectural design
at Central Main Vocational Technical Institute.
While still in school he applied his skills in architecture
to his family’s design and construction business.
He then moved into the commercial art field working
as an architectural and commercial illustrator for
a number of multi-national corporations.
..   .
Merriam’s illustrations have won numerous awards
including several Broderson awards,
New England Scholastics Press Association Award
(for editorial cartooning) and the
University of New England Honorary Masters of Humane
for the potential societal contribution of his work.
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In 1986, Merriam shifted his focus solely to fine art
and later that year had his first solo exhibition
at Abacus Gallery in Maine.

In 1998, Monarch Editions published
The Art of Daniel Merriam: The Impetus of Dreams,
a collection from a decade of his work.
In 2005, the book was introduced into the permanent
collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
. .. .
Regarded as one of the world's foremost watercolorists,
Daniel Merriam has captured the hearts and curiosities
of collectors worldwide. 
His prominent works also include several
book covers for award winning writers and is
also included in the public collections of
The Riverside Museum of Art in California,
The Gesundheit Institute in Virginia,
the Manhattan Club in New York, among others.
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http://www.danielmerriam.com/
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http://www.zdorovyevolosy.ru/
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~Georges Barbier~

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George Barbier was one of the
great French illustrators of the early 20th century.
Born in Nantes, France on Octobe 10 1882. 
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Barbier was 29 years old when he mounted his first
exhibition in 1911 and was subsequently swept to the
forefront of his profession with commissions to design
theatre and ballet costumes, to illustrate books,
and to produce haute couture fashion illustrations.
For the next 20 years Barbier led a group from the
Ecole des Beaux Arts who were nicknamed by
Vogue "The Knights of the Bracelet"—
a tribute to their fashionable and flamboyant
mannerisms and style of dress. 
.. . . 
Included in this élite circle were
Bernard Boutet de Monvel and Pierre Brissaud
(both of whom were Barbier's first cousins),
Paul Irib, Georges Lepape, and Charles Martin.
During his career Barbier also turned his hand
to jewellery, glass and wallpaper design,
wrote essays and many articles for
the prestigious Gazette du bon ton.
..
In the mid 1920s he worked with Erté to design
sets and costumes for the Folies Bergère
and in 1929 he wrote the introduction for
Erté's acclaimed exhibition and achieved
mainstream popularity through
his regular appearances in L'Illustration magazine.
Barbier died in 1932 at the very pinnacle of his success.
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~Read more about George Barbier~
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George Barbier werd geboren op 10 Oktober 1882
in Nantes, Frankrijk.
Toen Barbier 29 jaar oud was, had hij zijn 1ste 
tentoonstelling en werd vervolgens gevraagd
voor de productie van haute couture mode-illustraties.
De komende 20 jaar daarna  leidde Barbier een groep,
de Ecole des Beaux Arts, met bijnaam
Vogue "De ridders van de Armband" – genoemd.
een eerbetoon aan hun modieus en flamboyante
maniertjes van stijl in kleding.
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Tijdens zijn carrière ontwierp Barbier vele sieraden,
glas en behang ontwerpen, 
en schreef essays en vele artikelen voor het
  prestigieuze Gazette du Bon Ton.
Barbier overleed in 1932 op zijn hoogtepunt van zijn succes.
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~Alan Baker~

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Alan Baker studied for one year reading Zoology
at Hull university then in the summer of 1971,
aged nineteen, he left home with his girlfriend,
armed with a map torn from a school atlas, and his
savings of £70.00 and took the hippie trail to India.

He later took a degree in illustration at
Brighton Art School where he gained a first class Hons
in Illustration. Since then he has worked as
a freelance illustrator, writing and
illustrating over forty children's books,
receiving awards for eleven of them.
Six of which have been chosen
for the book of the year list. 
He has illustrated books for Michael Rosen,
Philippa Pearce and Louis de Bernieres.
..
Alan Baker has won the Benson and Hedges illustrators
gold award, Gold Creative Circle award,
Silver Campaign Press award. IRA/CBC.
Childrens Choice award
and was a Flair Creative match winner.
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These include the Little Rabbit series which have sold
over 750,000 copies to date worldwide.
White Rabbit's color book was a 2008 IBBY choice.
Over the years his work has been selected for the
Best of British, and Best of European illustration annuals.
More recently he has been producing illustrations
for the Guardian wall charts.
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~Read more about Alan Baker~
http://altpick.com/alanbaker
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~Victor Gabriel Gilbert~

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Victor Gilbert werd geboren op 13 Februari 1847
en is overleden in 1933 
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Geanimeerde straatscènes met bloemverkopers en
figuurstukken met jonge, elegante Parisiennes komen
veel voor in het oeuvre van de Parijse schilder Victor Gilbert.
Vooral bekend echter zijn Gilberts marktscènes:
de 'marchés aux fleurs' met name, maar ook appetijtelijke
uitstallingen van groente, gevogelte of vis.
Taferelen die aanspreken door hun realistische inslag
en de pittoreske sfeer. Gilbert werd opgeleid
door de historieschilder Victor Jean Adam en
de landschap- en dierschilder Charles Busson.
Hij exposeerde op de Salon des Artistes Français en
ontving meerdere onderscheidingen voor zijn werk.
Gilbert werkte ook mee aan de decoratieve muurschilderingen
in het stadhuis van Parijs. Zijn werk is opgenomen in
collecties van musea in o.a. Nice, Bayeux, Lille en Besançon.
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Victor Gilbert was born in Paris on February 13, 1847
and he died in 1933
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Victor Gabriel Gilbert was a French painter of
genre scenes. He received his formal training
from L. Em. Adan, Levasseur and Ch. Busson.
In 1873 he had his debut at the Paris Salon and
continued to be a faithful exhibitor at the Salon
des Artist Francais where he obtained a silver medal in 1889,
received the Bonnet Prize in 1926 and the Knight
of the Legion of Honour in 1897.
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He was highly respected for his fine detailed work
and was considered an inspiration to many artists.
His views of the colourful Parisian life, the boulevards,
cafés and flower stalls became well known.
At the same time he turned his effect on the portrayal
of adorable children, accomplishing a sensibility
and great harmony towards his subject.
. . .
It was during the mid 1870s that Gilbert became
a close friend to Pierre Martin, one of the principal
supporters of the impressionist movement and
Victor Gilbert’s paintings secured a place amongst
his collection of Impressionists like Monet,
van Gogh, Cezanne and Gauguin.
.. .  
Victor Gilbert’s paintings were not only well
sought after in France, he also exhibited
in 1883 in Munich, 1894 in Vienna and he was a
great success in London in 1908.
Today his work can be viewed in the
Museums of Bayeux, Besançon, Bordeaux,
Dieppe, le Havre, Lille, Liége, Nice and Strassbourg.
..
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http://www.rehs.com/Victor_Gilbert_Bio.html

~The Daydream~

The thronged boughs of the shadowy sycamore
Still bear young leaflets half the summer through;
From when the robin 'gainst the unhidden blue
Perched dark, till now, deep in the leafy core,
The embowered throstle's urgent wood-notes soar
Through summer silence. Still the leaves come new;
Yet never rosy-sheathed as those which drew
Their spiral tongues from spring-buds heretofore.
Within the branching shade of Reverie
Dreams even may spring till autumn; yet none be
Like woman's budding day-dream spirit-fann'd.
Lo! tow'rd deep skies, not deeper than her look,
She dreams; till now on her forgotten book
Drops the forgotten blossom from her hand.

Both the painting and poem were inspired by
Tennyson's poem of the same name, The Daydream

~Walter Crane~

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Walter Crane werd geboren in Liverpool
(Engeland) op 15 augustus 1845.
Hij is overleden in Horsham (West Sussex),
op 14 maart 1915.
Hij maakte schilderijen, illustraties,
kinderboeken, keramische tegels en
andere decoratieve kunst.
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Crane maakte deel uit van de Arts and Crafts movement.
Ideeën en werk van de Arts and Crafts drongen op
het continent het eerst door tot de Belgische kunstenaars
in Brussel. Daar ondertekenden in 1883, 20 kunstenaars
het manifest van de kunstenaarsgroep "Les Vingt" (De Twintig).
De groep had tot doel de progressieve, artistieke krachten
te bundelen en gezamenlijke salons te organiseren.
De groep was hoofdzakelijk Belgisch, maar had nauwe
contacten met de Parijse, Nederlandse en
Engelse moderne kunstwereld.
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De Vingt-leden waren enthousiast over de geschriften
van o.a. William Morris en Walter Crane.
Crane gebruikte golvende lijnen die we in de omslag
van de catalogi van De Vingt terugvinden.
Op de Rijksschool voor Kunstnijverheid Amsterdam,
gevestigd in het Amsterdamse Rijksmuseum
zochten kunstenaars, waaronder G.W. Dijsselhof
naar nieuwe basisprincipes voor de boektypografie
en -versiering. Via de geschriften van Jan Veth
konden Walter Crane's gedachten een solide
ondergrond vormen voor een Nederlandse
boekvernieuwing. Vooral Veth's bewerking
van Crane's boek Claims of Decorative Art
onder de titel Kunst en Samenleving dienden
de Negentigers, als handboek.
.  .
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 Walter Crane born 15 August 1845
He died 14 March 1915, and was cremated at the
Golders Green Crematorium where his ashes remain.
.. 
He was an English artist and book illustrator.
He is considered, along with Randolph Caldecott
and Kate Greenaway, one of the strongest contributors
to the child's nursery motif that the genre of
English children's illustrated literature would
exhibit in its developmental stages in the latter 19th century.
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His work featured some of the more colorful and detailed
beginnings of the child-in-the-garden motifs that would
characterize many nursery rhymes and children's stories
for decades to come. Born in Liverpool,
he was part of the Arts and Crafts movement.
He produced paintings, illustrations, children's books,
ceramic tiles and other decorative arts.
.Blue-bell tile from Flora's Train
for Pilkington's Tile and Pottery Co.
Earthenware, with relief decoration painted
with coloured glazes, England, c. 1900
~
~Click here for more info~

~Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?

  Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate.
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometimes declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
Win in eternal lines to time thou grow'st.
So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

by William Shakespeare~