PORTRAIT OF A COUNTRY ARTIST - C.F. TUNNICLIFFE,RA 1901-1979.**

UK,Qrto HB+dw/dj,1st edn thus.[This copy same year as true 1st edn,by arrangement with original publisher,GOLLANCZ.] FINE/VG.No owner inscrptn,no publisher's price,so no price-clip to dw/dj.Crisp,bright,clean, glossy laminated,colour pictorial illustrated upper wrap; b/w etching illustrated rear wrap with some shelf-wear,rubbing,creasing and chipping to edges and corners - no major losses though.Internally sellotape repaired,small 1" closed tear to head of spine/backstrip,and a 1/2" closed tear centre of top edge of upper wrap also.Top edge minisculely dust-soiled and spotted but generally bright and clean,fore-edge less affected and therefore much brighter and cleaner also; contents bright, tight and near pristine.Spine/backstrip slightly slightly sunned/faded - as usual/normal.Bright,clean,unblemished,plain dark brown cloth bds with bright,crisp,tamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip with previous owner bookplate pasted to top corner of ffe of plain white eps.UK,Qrto HB+ dw/dj,1st edn thus,9-160pp [paginated] includes half-title,b/w line illustrated vignetted title-page,full-page,full-colour frntis,contents+illus lists/ tables,8 chapters,profusely illustrated with 103 duotone and monochrome illustrations and 53 colour plates throughout the text and book,and a 4pp bibliography. Charles Frederick Tunnicliffe was raised on a small farm in Cheshire.The only son of hard-working country people,he was expected to take over his father's smallholding,but his precocious talent as an artist set him apart and in turn took up a scholarship to the Royal College of Art and came to London in 1920.After four years of intensive study,Tunnicliffe set out to earn his living and soon made his mark as an etcher and wood- engraver.In 1932 came his first major success with his illustrated edition of 'Tarka the Otter' by Henry Williamson.From this brilliant start, Tunnicliffe went on to illustrate dozens of books for well-known authors such as Alison Utley,Negley Farson,Richard Church and many others.He also produced several classic books of his own - 'My Country Book', 'Mereside Chronicle' and his masterpiece 'Shorelands Summer Diary' among them.His achievement as a wild-life artist,in particular as a bird artist,is of major importance.Turning to the study of birds in the 1930's, he devoted months at a time,year in,year out,to observing and sketching his favourite species,first on the Cheshire meres and nearby moors,then in Anglesey,his home from 1947 until his death in 1979.This book attempts to illustrate a sample from Tunnicliffe's enormous output of work in its various facets.The superb early etchings are well represented, as are his fine wood-engravings from the late 1930's.His watercolours,which became a regular feature of the Royal Academy Summer Exhibitions,are reproduced in colour,together with some of his sketches and measured drawings of birds.Particularly beautiful are the marvellous oils on cloth from 1938,little known now,but surely some of his most lovely pictures. Ian Niall's affectionate portrait of his friend describes the life of a warm-hearted,down-to-earth countryman,a totally dedicated artist whose genius lay in his depiction of scenes from country life and in the most exquisite representation of wild creatures. Please contact rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,because of the weight of this item,for correct,insured shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page!