The uncanny ability Roundtree had of capturing cuteness and endearment without reverting to excessive caricaturization is something I’ve always admired. Love his work; almost all his subjects are drawn in such a manner as to make one want to hug them.
An absolute master of watercolor. Very few people today can paint like this. Especially in watercolor. Just terrific stuff. Thanks again for another great video Pete.
Rountree was the master of anthropomorphic and wild life art, his pen& ink and watercolors were truly impressive, thank you for introducing us to this great illustrator/artist.
Another wonderful quarter of an hour appreciating the skill of a little remembered, yet fabulously talented, illustrator. Thanks again Pete for another outstanding video.
Thank you Peter, for once more bring to us the incredible art of the illustrator. My jaw dropped when I recognise the Swiss Family Robinson illustrations!! I grew up as a kid in West Belfast with that very book Harry Roundtree illustrated!! It's been 50yrs since I saw that book. Thankyou.
Rabbits!! Rabbits everywhere!! Thanks again Pete for an excellent video. Rountree's work has timeless charm, and I really appreciate his animal characters.
I'm always amazed when I like at more contemporary artists like Frank Frazetta, and I see hints of illustrators like Harry Rountree in their work. Frazetta's trees and some of his more nebulous backgrounds have that Rountree haziness that I love. Classic illustrators like Rountree have inspired generations of artists. Where would N.C. Wyeth had been without Howard Pyle, or even comic book artist Al Williamson be without Alex Raymond or Franklin Booth? This is one of the reasons I love your channel, Pete. I learn and get to see so much from all these amazing illustrators with each post. Thank you!
Thanks for your appreciation and comment. I get the feeling that back then there was a commonality of approach to study at art school that laid out the principles of the craft far more (or at least better) than it's done today. Probably because most teaching on illustration courses now are not hardened professionals. This may account for the ripples of recognition that spread throughout their work. Just a theory, mind you...
Pete, thank you for this! I've always been a great fan of the work of Harry Rountree, whom I believe deserves a far more prominent profile as an illustrator than what he currently has. I happily have an original, that I purchased in a little shop in London, hanging over my desk. Many thanks again for all your efforts, and the pleasure it gives your viewers.
Thanks once again for the wonderful introduction. Harry Rountree seems to have been a real master of illustration. Being able to so skillfully utilize a diverse array of styles and do so in such a way to get the pictures message across. Yet still a consistency that would allow one to identify the artist no matter the subject or style. Truly worthy of study and praise.
Thank you so much for letting us know about this awesome illustrator!!!! What charming and delightful paintings he produced. Again. Thank you!!!!❤❤❤❤❤😊😊❤❤❤😊
Thanks Pete for another winning video. You must put an awful lot of work into preparing them and sourcing your illustrations that you present so beautifully. To know it is appreciated by so many other people makes me happy that this work lives on. Job done!!
When I was still single digit, I'd go to the library and spend as much time as I could looking at art books. Harry Roundtree artwork was always so alive with so much going on. I think as a kid, we observe more and I was always fascinated with the imaginations of his characters and backgrounds. Maxfield Parish for kids.
Roundtree's animals are fantastic and so incredibly delightful. Thanks for introducing me to this opportunity to experience the magnificence of his work. I grew up with Uncle Remus and brer rabbit ... I was a young child and was not thinking about the illustrations creator. I certainly wish I had the books of my youth. Such is life ❤ You sometimes don't realize what you have until it is gone 🤔
@@petebeard As I suspected. There is a singular genius at work in that field. I was, sadly, only privileged to encounter it once in my video game career. Humongous Entertainment in WA state in the U.S. Genuine artists employing hand cell animation working with genuine writers to deliver marvelous games enjoyed by children and their parents alike. All of it original content. Nothing could save them in the end from founders who sought their big payday, alas.
My partner is an artist, but I must be truthful, I would love to have many of these images in my home. They draw you in, comfort and relax me and tell stories even without text. Thanks again❤
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. And you are absolutely correct, illustrators such as Rountree have the ability to draw the viewer into the worlds they create.
• Harry Rountree What an incredible and prolific illustrator. It must've been quite profitable to sell children's books to the middle- and upper-class in an era that seems to have ranged from Victorian/Edwardian to George VI. All these anthropomorphic characters seem to have been quite popular in the UK and Commonwealth as you've presented so many examples from various illustrators before. Rountree's serious natural renderings are absolutely stunning. Glad to hear another mention of Enid Blyton, my favorite author from my pre-teen years... along with WWI ace Biggles, of course. Another great video. Thank you.
Thanks a lot for another favourable comment. It seems to be one of those enduring things that kids - and for that matter adults - respond favourably to animals behaving like humans. I'm sure it goes back to Aesop and presumably way before that.
I’m sure I must have seen his work while growing up but this presentation felt like a first run. I am so glad I got the chance to see it. Really great work! Thank you for this one.
Excellent work from both Rountree and Beard, so thank you. Rountree's war time work reminded me of the WW1 war artist (and sniper) Len Smith's book 'Drawing Fire'. The book describes his wartime experience but also includes many of his works of art from the period, which, as a military veteran myself, I appreciated. Rountree's backgrounds, especially seascapes and mountains, reminds me of the artwork in the Tintin books, a style I've always loved.
Thanks again for commenting. In relation to your last comment I would say that Rountree is the very embodiment of what's missing from Rubino, and much closer to my own stylistic comfort zone. I wasn't aware of Len Smith but a quick google doesn't reveal much evidence.
@petebeard Len Smith wasn't well known at all, but his book made an impact on me. I used to do a lot of sketching and doodling in letters home during my National Service, which is pretty much what Len did, except he was an artist with serious skills. In Len's time, watercolour painting skills were encouraged at school to make up for the fact that television, computers, and cellphones hadn't been invented yet, so your average middle-class student had some decent artistic skills. Artistic skills on the battlefield were handy then, combined with a keen sense of observation and detail, to visualize the terrain for the top brass hiding away far to the rear.
His watercolors sometimes looked like gouache was applied, as there is a very opaque, painterly feel, especially to large areas of color. Thanks, Pete: This was a great exploration!
INDEED how attractive and entertaining illustrated advertisements used to be, Mr Beard. Another SUPERB video. Thank you. I have always loved Rountree's Mansion Polish adverts. A preparatory drawing came up recently which showed how much imagination and effort went into their making. Cherry Blossom was Chiswick Polishes' first polish (for shoes) but the later Mansion Polish was for floors and Rountree's inventiveness using the bums, cotton tails, fur and plumage for applying, buffing and shining floors was a masterstroke. Probably banned nowadays by some animal rights group but I found them magical. What better use of a maiden aunt's Persian Blue than making one's Steinway or Chippendale sparkle and shine and who better to illustrate it than Mr Rountree. A truly excellent video on a truly excellent artist. Well done.
Thanks for your appreciation of this video and my efforts in putting it together. I find myself wondering - as someone who used to try to carry out the wishes of visually illiterate art directors - how much control and input Rountree would have had in this cmpaign. They all come across as his ideas, so maybe art directors were more civilised back then and just trusted his instincts.
Pete, thanks for reintroducing me to Rountree! Apparently I'd seen (and loved) his illustrations as a kid, but then forgot he existed. I suspect that the books I recall were part of my nonna's collection, because if they were mine then I would still have them. Great illustrator! Jealous of the fact he could handle both ink pen and watercolours so well, as they demand wildly different approaches to illustration that he obviously mastered!
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation. I am similarly in awe of his enviable talent and skill, but didn't know of his existence until I started the channel.
Thanks, Pete! Wonderful-I had never really heard of Rountree, though I am pretty sure I had seen some of those pictures. He seemed to have a special fondness for bunnies and little birds. Their faces are really great.
So wonderful! Thank you for making this. I am replaying it at 0.5 speed, sound off, so that I can enjoy the paintings and drawings again. As a child I saw some of his works (I was 4 when he passed). The only modern illustrator that comes close to Rountree is James Gurney who did the Dinotopia books and a movie also, I think.
Wow, you had us laughing the moment we saw the title-card! Utterly charming and endearing, he made his animals anthropomorphic without looking forced in any way... We enjoyed this very much, thank you for sharing!
Thanks a lot for your comment. How strange - and of course also depressing - that so many have benefitted from the benign influence of Rountree's mastery of anthropomorphic character work and yet he is still so little known.
Top notch, as always...thanks for sharing this with us all,best wishes from the wirral peninsula,bounded by the mersey and the Dee and the Irish sea...geography and rhyme....E...😊😊
Hello again, and my thoughts are on sunnier climes than northwest England as I'll be on the costa del sol this time romorrow (unlesss the plane crashes, that is).
Every illustration is one to be studied in detail, delighting in finding unexpected touches. Rountree’s enchanting anthropomorphic animals are as endearing as are his beautifully delicate wildlife studies. Oh, and the journeys into the world of Alice in Wonderland - exploring them is in itself a ride into surrealism. You have made a fervent Rountree fan of me and I am overjoyed to have found this artist able to draw me into his world. Thank you, what a wonderful experience. (Hope you enjoyed a well deserved holiday. Olé, señor)
Thanks again and I'm delighted you appreciate the wonders of Rountree's work. As you can tell I've not actually gone yet (early tomorrow) so I thought I would make myself useful answering some of the early comments, while my Lear jet is being prepared..
@petebeard Gosh, so it IS true about the millions you can make running a youtube channel. And there are rumours about so much of Spain rolling out red carpets for the arrival of a much honoured but anonymous guest. The Spanish royal family on standby. Hasta la vista, Señor Beard
O M G !! How I LOVE his illustrations! The animals and the colors! This is one of (if not THE) favorite of mine. Another that I'll peruse again and again! I can only imagine that it is fun researching and sharing these geniuses? I hope so. Tnx!
Thanks as usual, and I'm particularly pleased you appreciate his work so much - he's one of my all time favourites. And yes it is - most of the time at least - good fun.
Wonderfully entertaining artist and most appropriate musical entry & exit. Those were indeed “the good old days” WRT illustration. Rountree was clearly a very sharp observer of the natural world, including the nature of humans. I particularly enjoy his first renditions of Alice’s adventures.
I had that book of Aesop's fables as a kid, how wonderful to see those distinctive and expressive illustrations again. A few others are very familiar as well... A talented artist and a fine homage to his endearing and enduring works.
Absolutely agree, Pete, Rountree should be up there with the greats of British illustrators. Of course, as you probably figured out by now, I have a great passion (and bias) for anyone that can capture anatomically correct but expressive anthropomorphic animals and Rountree excels. How could I have missed him?? Would love to see more from his Art of the Illustrator book, I'm sure I could learn a thing or two.I flashed on A.B. Frost, of course, with his pen and ink work, but still unique and full of life. Thanks as always for showcasing another great animal illustrator. Just got over a bout of Covid myself, a little tired, but forced me to get a lot of drawing done so I'm not complaining. Cold and wet here in Provence, more reason to stay inside and work (with a hot toddy by my side, of course). Stay safe, Pete! Cheers!
Hi again. Like you I'm besotted with work such as this, and naturally enough envious of the talent and skill needed to create it. I wouldn't worry about the Art of the Illustrator - it's mostly a put up job which doesn't accurately reflect the illustrators methods. Now it's time for me to head to the costa del sol for fun and games...
Your profiles of these wonderful artists should be published in book form, if all the copyrights could be obtained, you are doing a great service to all these artists and their work thank you sincerely for bringing a place for all these people and their art work
Many thanks for your appreciation of my efforts with the channel. And as it happens there has been some interest from a publisher so it just might happen.
I really appreciate your compilation video. I really admire Harry Roundtree's work. It would be amazing if some publisher would make a compilation book of his art throughout his life. Thanks!!!
Thanks a lot for your favourable comment about the video. It's a mystery to me why nobody has published such a book, and it seems not that much is known about his life.
Pete, This is great stuff and well done. I have books of Arthur Rackham and Howard Pyle's work. I just looked up their dates, and, yes, these three were roughly contemporaneous. Rountree is new to me, and I see similarities in his work, to both of those greats, though those two are dissimilar to one another, at least to my pedestrian eye. Mr. Rountree is a complete master. My next trip to the bookstore I'll be looking for his books.
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation of the video and Rountrees enviable talent. Good luck with your hunting, but you might do better with eBay.
Wow, what a massive challenge to bump Tenniel out of the inner eye and place a completely different, commanding vision of Alice in its place. Even the colour palette is a bold departure that seems to take a chance. But how rich and gorgeous!
Well done! The name was familiar to me, but only vaguely. I really liked how he illustrated the Harris tales, and his second go at "Alice". Still, there is a sort of fuzziness about many of the illustrations, although finely done, that I don't see in some of my other favorites, like Rackham and Shepherd (Poo books) among dozens of others. Although this may be due to the lack of these books in our children's collections. There is something about books loved at an early age that will always outshine one's learned of later.
Pete! I thought you weren't overly keen on overtly cutesy animal pictures? 🤣 Harry Rountree is a favourite of mine, though, despite all the anthropomorphic bunnies and mice scuttling about. I worked at the NZ Herald for many years and we had a huge collection of bound, archived Illustrated Weekly News magazines wherein some of Rountree's early work could be seen. At the time, though, I wasn't fully aware of his successes in England. That travel poster was almost iconic, and inspired numerous imitations down the years. Rountree was a classic example of an ex-pat making good offshore! Some of Rountree's more serious wildlife illustrations remind me of John Livingston Bull's work seen in the Saturday Evening Post. A thought: You mention illustration in the field of advertising and it occurred to me that would make an interesting chapter in your series, particularly as an historic overview including perhaps lesser known illustrators within the ad industry, both in Europe and the UK. There are likely so many, it could be a mini-series in itself!
Hello again, and my aversion is to the saccharine cuteness of Mabel Lucy Attwell through to some of the Golden Books of the 1950s. Rountree's stuff may be endearing but it's robust and I think 'cute" would be doing it a major disservice, I think. I have already made a video about illustration in advertising a few years back, and I heartily recommend it. Thanks for your comments and observations.
I love Rountree's work. A few years ago, I was trying to find some of his 'Alicias,' but I couldn't. I would like to know where I can find his bibliography. Thank you for your work and for sharing these wonders with us. Rountree is an absolute genius.
Thanks a lot for youtr appreciation of this video. I struggled but failed to find a complete list of his books and fared even worse when it came to the many magazines he worked on. It's criminal that he should be so ignored given his contribution.
Wow, another great video, but there was once small mistake at 13.09, the illustration was not of two Leopards, but Jaguars. I love my animals and have painted all of the big cats in the past. The way to judge Leopard by its spots, is to look the rosettes as they are called on the body, in a Leopard they are in clusters of 3-4, with no spots in the centre, in Jaguars the body rosettes are squarish with spots in the centre.
Alas, children's book illustration has gone largely minimalist-simplistic, good-natured humor is out of fashion, fantasy requires a dark element, and our age is less drawn to anthropomorphized animals than to animalized humans! But thank you for this very pleasant excursion into the work of a great illustrator!
It does feel like we took a wrong turning in terms of culture (and probably everyhing else) somewhere along the way. So much genuine beauty now ignored.
Bravo! I've enjoyed every UA-cam video you've produced since day one. Any chance of doing a video highlighting the illustrations on the crates of fruits and vegetables from back in the day? Even as a young kid in the Fifties I was fascinated by the images and colors. Thanks for all you do!
Thanks a lot for your appreciation and long lasting commitment to the channel. I'm sorry to disappoint you but the topic you suggest would defeat me. It's just too esoteric, and those who created the images completely unknown or forgotten. This is sadly frequently the case.
@@petebeard Thank you, Pete. Keep up the good work! I've learned a great deal from watching your videos and I look forward many more. All the best to you...
I must confess, this it the type of illustrations I like best, though I look forward to all of them. Certainly, the river side picnic at 16:29 comes from Wind in the Willow. That is certainly Ratty and Mole.
Thanks for the comment. I still don't know where the image came from though, as he never illustrated an edition of the book. It must have been a one-off.
The reason for Rag Books was to introduce very young children to the idea of books. These rag books became very soft, I had several. They had no hard parts to harm, whereas 'real' books had sharp edges and corners, not only harmful for children but damaging to the sensitivities of bibliophiles who wished to early acquaint their you ones
Thanks a lot for your comment and explanation. Another viewer has suggested the revere notion that it was to protect the books from the little terrors. My own comment was intended more as a sarcastic reference to the negative effects on print quality.
NEVER STOP making these videos, Pete Beard!!!!!! They're proper grand!
I agree. They are wonderful, and inspiring!
They are informative, enlightening and loads of fun on every level!
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. No intention of stopping if I have the choice.
@@petebeard Me too!! I'm 78 and plan to live forever, or die in the attempt!
The uncanny ability Roundtree had of capturing cuteness and endearment without reverting to excessive caricaturization is something I’ve always admired. Love his work; almost all his subjects are drawn in such a manner as to make one want to hug them.
I'll second that sentiment. Thanks a lot for your comment.
An absolute master of watercolor. Very few people today can paint like this. Especially in watercolor. Just terrific stuff. Thanks again for another great video Pete.
You are most welcome, and thanks for the comment.
Thank-you! I love this channel so much. The illustrators deserve to be remembered and appreciated.
Many thanks for your appreciation of the channel and the illustrators featured.
Rountree was the master of anthropomorphic and wild life art, his pen& ink and watercolors were truly impressive, thank you for introducing us to this great illustrator/artist.
That's easy for you to say...
Thanks for your comment and I'm glad you appreciate his immense talent.
nearly word for word the same response I was going to post! ^^^
Another wonderful quarter of an hour appreciating the skill of a little remembered, yet fabulously talented, illustrator. Thanks again Pete for another outstanding video.
As always you are more than welcome, and I am delighted you and other viewers share my passion for his work.
Loving your series of videos. It’s lovely to rediscover illustrators from my childhood and finally put a name to them ❤
Many thanks for your appreciation of the channel and my contribution to it.
What a wonderful presentation!! Thanks for introducing me to this amazing artist. Love your channel.
Your appreciation is very welcome - thanks a lot.
This was an absolute joy to watch. Your choice of music was perfect. Harry Roundtree was a gift to us all.
Thanks a lot for your appreciation of this video. It is a considerable pleasure to be able to bring such talents to a wider audience.
Thanks for continuing to share these stories I didn't know I would be so enlightened by.
Your comments are always welcome - thanks.
Thank you Peter, for once more bring to us the incredible art of the illustrator. My jaw dropped when I recognise the Swiss Family Robinson illustrations!! I grew up as a kid in West Belfast with that very book Harry Roundtree illustrated!! It's been 50yrs since I saw that book. Thankyou.
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation. What puzzles me is how I managed to be an old man before I saw any of his work.
Rabbits!! Rabbits everywhere!! Thanks again Pete for an excellent video. Rountree's work has timeless charm, and I really appreciate his animal characters.
Your appreciation is always welcome. Thanks a lot.
I'm with you, he was one of the finest children's book illustrator!!
Thanks for the comment and I'm glad to see the video is proving popular.
Love these videos, pete! They're always wonderful.
Thanks a lot for your comment.
I'm always amazed when I like at more contemporary artists like Frank Frazetta, and I see hints of illustrators like Harry Rountree in their work. Frazetta's trees and some of his more nebulous backgrounds have that Rountree haziness that I love. Classic illustrators like Rountree have inspired generations of artists. Where would N.C. Wyeth had been without Howard Pyle, or even comic book artist Al Williamson be without Alex Raymond or Franklin Booth? This is one of the reasons I love your channel, Pete. I learn and get to see so much from all these amazing illustrators with each post. Thank you!
Wow good spot with the frazetta, I also thought that .
Thanks for your appreciation and comment. I get the feeling that back then there was a commonality of approach to study at art school that laid out the principles of the craft far more (or at least better) than it's done today. Probably because most teaching on illustration courses now are not hardened professionals. This may account for the ripples of recognition that spread throughout their work. Just a theory, mind you...
@@petebeard Pete, I hope Frank Frazetta is on your to-do list.
What a nice life to have lived for this man to be able to create and amuse so many. Mr. Beard, well done as always.
...yes, and quite a long one for someone from that time. Thanks for the comment.
These two jaguars on the branch... H. Rountree was a master of watercolor. Thank you for this video, great as always!
Oops... I called them leopards, which was a mistake.. Thanks for the comment
@@petebeard I did not even notice, staring on an image as itself was as great as Detmold's or Rackham's if not more beautiful.
Thanks so much for introducing this artist to me. He's an instant favorite!
That's good to know.Thanks for your comment.
Pete, thank you for this! I've always been a great fan of the work of Harry Rountree, whom I believe deserves a far more prominent profile as an illustrator than what he currently has. I happily have an original, that I purchased in a little shop in London, hanging over my desk. Many thanks again for all your efforts, and the pleasure it gives your viewers.
Thanks a lot for your continued appreciation of the channel content
Thanks once again for the wonderful introduction. Harry Rountree seems to have been a real master of illustration. Being able to so skillfully utilize a diverse array of styles and do so in such a way to get the pictures message across. Yet still a consistency that would allow one to identify the artist no matter the subject or style. Truly worthy of study and praise.
Thanks for your positive response to the video, and Rountree's enviable talent.
Thank you for intoducing us to this vastly interesting illustrator. This channel is a treasure!😃
I'm very flattered by your comment and appreciation. Thanks a lot.
Thanks for another great illustrator, Pete!
Only the best on this channel - thanks a lot.
Thank you so much for letting us know about this awesome illustrator!!!! What charming and delightful paintings he produced. Again. Thank you!!!!❤❤❤❤❤😊😊❤❤❤😊
I'm pleased to hear that you and quite a few other viewers admire his work as much as I do. Thanks for the comment.
Thank You, Pete !!! EVERY ONE of your beautiful videos brightens up my day !!!
❤
Your appreciation is very welcome, and its always good to know the content is appreciated. Thanks.
Such a keen sense of composition, coloring and a kindhearted sense of narration and humor. Thank you for highlighting this master!
Thanks a lot for your comment, and it's good to know you share my high opinion of his work.
Thanks Pete for another winning video. You must put an awful lot of work into preparing them and sourcing your illustrations that you present so beautifully. To know it is appreciated by so many other people makes me happy that this work lives on. Job done!!
Many thanks for your appreciation of my efforts. It doesn't feel like hard work (most of the time, at least). And it keeps me sane - I think.
When I was still single digit, I'd go to the library and spend as much time as I could looking at art books. Harry Roundtree artwork was always so alive with so much going on. I think as a kid, we observe more and I was always fascinated with the imaginations of his characters and backgrounds. Maxfield Parish for kids.
Many thanks for your comment, and I agree wholeheartedly with your opinion of his work.
Roundtree's animals are fantastic and so incredibly delightful.
Thanks for introducing me to this opportunity to experience the magnificence of his work.
I grew up with Uncle Remus and brer rabbit ... I was a young child and was not thinking about the illustrations creator. I certainly wish I had the books of my youth.
Such is life ❤
You sometimes don't realize what you have until it is gone 🤔
It's not gone. It's just in another part of the library!
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation of Rountree's formidable talent.
Such gorgeous rich colour and superbly animated characters. Harry Roundtree was heads above the rest. Thank you Pete very enjoyable.
You're welcome as always. Thanks a lot.
"New Zealand: Why not?"
Wonderful work.
Thanks for the comment.
I felt ambushed by the anthropomorphic characters, which are not just excruciatingly adorable; they feel so real!
Thanks for the comment. As someone who also illustrated that kind of thing in my time I am consumed with envy for his talent, skill and imagination.
@@petebeard As I suspected. There is a singular genius at work in that field. I was, sadly, only privileged to encounter it once in my video game career. Humongous Entertainment in WA state in the U.S. Genuine artists employing hand cell animation working with genuine writers to deliver marvelous games enjoyed by children and their parents alike. All of it original content. Nothing could save them in the end from founders who sought their big payday, alas.
My partner is an artist, but I must be truthful, I would love to have many of these images in my home. They draw you in, comfort and relax me and tell stories even without text. Thanks again❤
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. And you are absolutely correct, illustrators such as Rountree have the ability to draw the viewer into the worlds they create.
His character design is so good that I wish creatures looked just like that in real life .
Thanks a lot for your comment, and I totally agree with your sentiments.
• Harry Rountree
What an incredible and prolific illustrator. It must've been quite profitable to sell children's books to the middle- and upper-class in an era that seems to have ranged from Victorian/Edwardian to George VI.
All these anthropomorphic characters seem to have been quite popular in the UK and Commonwealth as you've presented so many examples from various illustrators before. Rountree's serious natural renderings are absolutely stunning. Glad to hear another mention of Enid Blyton, my favorite author from my pre-teen years... along with WWI ace Biggles, of course.
Another great video. Thank you.
Thanks a lot for another favourable comment. It seems to be one of those enduring things that kids - and for that matter adults - respond favourably to animals behaving like humans. I'm sure it goes back to Aesop and presumably way before that.
Excelente, gracias de nuevo! 😊
You are welcome.
Rountree was an extremely versatile talent, but his watercolors were especially stunning. Thank you again, Mr. Beard
They don't come any better than Rountree, as far as I'm concerned. Thanks for the comment.
I have just ordered some watercolour paints inspired by this video and this artist . Let’s see what damage I can do with them
I have just ordered some watercolour paints inspired by this video and this artist . Let’s see what damage I can do with them
His line work is superb. I remember this more than the colour pictures. Great retrospective as usual.
Thanks a lot for your comment and appreiation.
I’m sure I must have seen his work while growing up but this presentation felt like a first run. I am so glad I got the chance to see it. Really great work! Thank you for this one.
Thanks for the favourable comment and I'm glad you appreciate his marvellous work.
Excellent work from both Rountree and Beard, so thank you.
Rountree's war time work reminded me of the WW1 war artist (and sniper) Len Smith's book 'Drawing Fire'.
The book describes his wartime experience but also includes many of his works of art from the period, which, as a military veteran myself, I appreciated.
Rountree's backgrounds, especially seascapes and mountains, reminds me of the artwork in the Tintin books, a style I've always loved.
Thanks again for commenting. In relation to your last comment I would say that Rountree is the very embodiment of what's missing from Rubino, and much closer to my own
stylistic comfort zone. I wasn't aware of Len Smith but a quick google doesn't reveal much evidence.
@petebeard Len Smith wasn't well known at all, but his book made an impact on me.
I used to do a lot of sketching and doodling in letters home during my National Service, which is pretty much what Len did, except he was an artist with serious skills.
In Len's time, watercolour painting skills were encouraged at school to make up for the fact that television, computers, and cellphones hadn't been invented yet, so your average middle-class student had some decent artistic skills.
Artistic skills on the battlefield were handy then, combined with a keen sense of observation and detail, to visualize the terrain for the top brass hiding away far to the rear.
Thanks for doing these videos! I love to watch them while I paint and sometimes I don’t watch but listen to you and well it helps a tons! 🎉
Thanks a lot for your comment - but my voice without the pictures? Better the other way around.
His watercolors sometimes looked like gouache was applied, as there is a very opaque, painterly feel, especially to large areas of color. Thanks, Pete: This was a great exploration!
Thanks - glad you appreciate his work (even if not for comics!)
What wonderful illustrations! Thank you for sharing!😊
My pleasure - thanks for commenting.
Blinding... what a great video. Nice cheeky images with a lovely complimenting palette, that was a delight mr Beard many thanks...
Thanks a lot for your comment and appreciation of Rountree and his amazing illustrations
INDEED how attractive and entertaining illustrated advertisements used to be, Mr Beard.
Another SUPERB video. Thank you.
I have always loved Rountree's Mansion Polish adverts. A preparatory drawing came up recently which showed how much imagination and effort went into their making.
Cherry Blossom was Chiswick Polishes' first polish (for shoes) but the later Mansion Polish was for floors and Rountree's inventiveness using the bums, cotton tails, fur and plumage for applying, buffing and shining floors was a masterstroke. Probably banned nowadays by some animal rights group but I found them magical. What better use of a maiden aunt's Persian Blue than making one's Steinway or Chippendale sparkle and shine and who better to illustrate it than Mr Rountree.
A truly excellent video on a truly excellent artist. Well done.
Thanks for your appreciation of this video and my efforts in putting it together. I find myself wondering - as someone who used to try to carry out the wishes of visually illiterate art directors - how much control and input Rountree would have had in this cmpaign. They all come across as his ideas, so maybe art directors were more civilised back then and just trusted his instincts.
Dear Mr Beard, my understanding is that illustrators in England were given a hard time by both art directors AND authors. A sad affair.
Pete, thanks for reintroducing me to Rountree! Apparently I'd seen (and loved) his illustrations as a kid, but then forgot he existed. I suspect that the books I recall were part of my nonna's collection, because if they were mine then I would still have them. Great illustrator! Jealous of the fact he could handle both ink pen and watercolours so well, as they demand wildly different approaches to illustration that he obviously mastered!
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation. I am similarly in awe of his enviable talent and skill, but didn't know of his existence until I started the channel.
Thanks, Pete. Yet another delightful, entertaining and educational video.
Thanks for another positive comment.
Thanks, Pete! Wonderful-I had never really heard of Rountree, though I am pretty sure I had seen some of those pictures. He seemed to have a special fondness for bunnies and little birds. Their faces are really great.
Thanks a lot for your appreciation and comments about Rountree and his wonderful creations.
So wonderful! Thank you for making this. I am replaying it at 0.5 speed, sound off, so that I can enjoy the paintings and drawings again. As a child I saw some of his works (I was 4 when he passed). The only modern illustrator that comes close to Rountree is James Gurney who did the Dinotopia books and a movie also, I think.
Thanks a lot for your comment and appreciation of this video. Sadly for me I was completely unaware of Rountree until I was already an old man.
Thank you for sharing these Amazing illustrations!
My pleasure. Thanks for the comment.
Another superb piece of artistic appreciation - and with many valuable bibliographical notes.
Thanks as always for your appreciation and comment.
I'm sure I've seen some of his work at some time! Beautiful! Thank you for this video, and I loved the music. Enjoy Spain!
Glad you enjoyed it. Spain is lovely and hot.
Wow, you had us laughing the moment we saw the title-card! Utterly charming and endearing, he made his animals anthropomorphic without looking forced in any way... We enjoyed this very much, thank you for sharing!
I'm very pleased you enjoyed his work. Thanks for another positive comment.
Hola, Pete! This artist, Rountree, was a genius! (and that zoom on on the leopards was mesmerizing!)
Many thanks. I'm besotted with Rountrees
I remember seeing reprints of his work as a child and loving the animals. You can see how Disney has been inspired by his work for sure.
Thanks a lot for your comment. How strange - and of course also depressing - that so many have benefitted from the benign influence of Rountree's mastery of anthropomorphic character work and yet he is still so little known.
Fabulous video, thank you! You keep things simple & clean, great timing, super music, engaging messages :)
Many thanks for your appreciation. Comments such as yours are always welcome.
Top notch, as always...thanks for sharing this with us all,best wishes from the wirral peninsula,bounded by the mersey and the Dee and the Irish sea...geography and rhyme....E...😊😊
Hello again, and my thoughts are on sunnier climes than northwest England as I'll be on the costa del sol this time romorrow (unlesss the plane crashes, that is).
@@petebeard....enjoy....😊😊😊
A channel that’s like a box of inks ...thank you ❤❤❤❤
Thanks a lot for your appreciation.
A new discovery... good job once again... thank you.
Many thanks as usual.
Every illustration is one to be studied in detail, delighting in finding unexpected touches. Rountree’s enchanting anthropomorphic animals are as endearing as are his beautifully delicate wildlife studies. Oh, and the journeys into the world of Alice in Wonderland - exploring them is in itself a ride into surrealism. You have made a fervent Rountree fan of me and I am overjoyed to have found this artist able to draw me into his world. Thank you, what a wonderful experience.
(Hope you enjoyed a well deserved holiday. Olé, señor)
Thanks again and I'm delighted you appreciate the wonders of Rountree's work. As you can tell I've not actually gone yet (early tomorrow) so I thought I would make myself useful answering some of the early comments, while my Lear jet is being prepared..
@petebeard
Gosh, so it IS true about the millions you can make running a youtube channel. And there are rumours about so much of Spain rolling out red carpets for the arrival of a much honoured but anonymous guest. The Spanish royal family on standby. Hasta la vista, Señor Beard
O M G !! How I LOVE his illustrations! The animals and the colors! This is one of (if not THE) favorite of mine. Another that I'll peruse again and again!
I can only imagine that it is fun researching and sharing these geniuses? I hope so. Tnx!
Thanks as usual, and I'm particularly pleased you appreciate his work so much - he's one of my all time favourites. And yes it is - most of the time at least - good fun.
Once again, thanks for this video! Great job, really appreciated! A Rountree's monography should be published...
Thanks a lot for your comment. He really does deserve a book.
Your videos are such an inspiration! Thank you so much, Mr. Beard.
Your appreciation and comment are very welcome. Many thanks.
Wonderfully entertaining artist and most appropriate musical entry & exit. Those were indeed “the good old days” WRT illustration. Rountree was clearly a very sharp observer of the natural world, including the nature of humans. I particularly enjoy his first renditions of Alice’s adventures.
Thanks for another positive response. The man was a genius as far as I'm concerned.
@@petebeard oh I certainly agree with you!
Oh My ! That was marvelous. Thank you, Pete.
You are welcome - and thanks for the comment.
Thanks, Pete, a visual lark per normal for your shows.
Many thanks for the comment.
He was a huge influence on me when i was learning to draw as a kid. I still revere him, not least for his incredible skill with watercolour.
Sadly I didn't discover his incredible and amusing talent until myself and old man and unable to apply his influence. Thanks a lot for the comment.
I had that book of Aesop's fables as a kid, how wonderful to see those distinctive and expressive illustrations again. A few others are very familiar as well... A talented artist and a fine homage to his endearing and enduring works.
Thanks a lot for your comment and appreciation. Sadly for me I was an old man myself before I encountered his work.
What a wonderful illustrator, i love his art .
I'm pleased you enjoyed the video and illustrations. Thanks for the comment.
Beautiful balance between realism and cartooning.
Very true and thanks for the comment.
Absolutely agree, Pete, Rountree should be up there with the greats of British illustrators. Of course, as you probably figured out by now, I have a great passion (and bias) for anyone that can capture anatomically correct but expressive anthropomorphic animals and Rountree excels. How could I have missed him?? Would love to see more from his Art of the Illustrator book, I'm sure I could learn a thing or two.I flashed on A.B. Frost, of course, with his pen and ink work, but still unique and full of life. Thanks as always for showcasing another great animal illustrator. Just got over a bout of Covid myself, a little tired, but forced me to get a lot of drawing done so I'm not complaining. Cold and wet here in Provence, more reason to stay inside and work (with a hot toddy by my side, of course). Stay safe, Pete! Cheers!
Hi again. Like you I'm besotted with work such as this, and naturally enough envious of the talent and skill needed to create it. I wouldn't worry about the Art of the Illustrator - it's mostly a put up job which doesn't accurately reflect the illustrators methods. Now it's time for me to head to the costa del sol for fun and games...
Your profiles of these wonderful artists should be published in book form, if all the copyrights could be obtained, you are doing a great service to all these artists and their work thank you sincerely for bringing a place for all these people and their art work
Many thanks for your appreciation of my efforts with the channel. And as it happens there has been some interest from a publisher so it just might happen.
I really appreciate your compilation video. I really admire Harry Roundtree's work. It would be amazing if some publisher would make a compilation book of his art throughout his life.
Thanks!!!
Thanks a lot for your favourable comment about the video. It's a mystery to me why nobody has published such a book, and it seems not that much is known about his life.
Pete, This is great stuff and well done. I have books of Arthur Rackham and Howard Pyle's work. I just looked up their dates, and, yes, these three were roughly contemporaneous. Rountree is new to me, and I see similarities in his work, to both of those greats, though those two are dissimilar to one another, at least to my pedestrian eye. Mr. Rountree is a complete master. My next trip to the bookstore I'll be looking for his books.
Many thanks for your comment and appreciation of the video and Rountrees enviable talent. Good luck with your hunting, but you might do better with eBay.
Wow, what a massive challenge to bump Tenniel out of the inner eye and place a completely different, commanding vision of Alice in its place. Even the colour palette is a bold departure that seems to take a chance. But how rich and gorgeous!
Thanks a lot for your comment and appreciation of the video and the work of Harry Rountree. A rare and wildly entertaining illustrator.
Thoroughly enjoyable, thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it.
Growing up at the end of this artwork era, I'm amazed at how prolific these artists were.
You can also see the paths that were cut for such artists as Beatrix Potter.
To be that talented and productive is a truly enviable trait. Thanks for your comment.
Thanks Pete, this really cheered me up, I loved the music too!
You're very welcome
Sublime! Thanks, Pete.
Thanks as ever for your continued support.
Good Lord “visually exciting “ is an understatement, such a sure hand.
Thanks a lot for your comment.
I love his work, Pete!
Me too, naturally enough.
Great collection of Artists and works.
If you haven’t already… “Will Eisner” should be added to your list.
Cheers
Thanks a lot for your appreciation. I'm happy to tell you he is on the list to appear, but I couldn't say when. So many to do.
Well done! The name was familiar to me, but only vaguely. I really liked how he illustrated the Harris tales, and his second go at "Alice". Still, there is a sort of fuzziness about many of the illustrations, although finely done, that I don't see in some of my other favorites, like Rackham and Shepherd (Poo books) among dozens of others. Although this may be due to the lack of these books in our children's collections. There is something about books loved at an early age that will always outshine one's learned of later.
Thanks a lot for the comment. And any fuzziness I'm sure is down to the print or scan quality. Very few are from originals.
Very enjoyable video! Thank you!
Thanks a lot for your comment.
10:08 and 10:16 : what a beatiful illustrations!
Hi again and I could not bring myself to choose any favourites. Thanks for the comment.
@@petebeard Always I am seeing your videos, I'm a follower of your invaluable effort to bring new life to these "Unsung Heroes"!
Did not knew him, beautiful use of colour and shading.
I'm glad to have made the introduction.
Beautiful work.
Glad you think so - and thanks for another favourable comment.
@@petebeard You're welcome Pete.
Pete! I thought you weren't overly keen on overtly cutesy animal pictures? 🤣
Harry Rountree is a favourite of mine, though, despite all the anthropomorphic bunnies and mice scuttling about. I worked at the NZ Herald for many years and we had a huge collection of bound, archived Illustrated Weekly News magazines wherein some of Rountree's early work could be seen. At the time, though, I wasn't fully aware of his successes in England. That travel poster was almost iconic, and inspired numerous imitations down the years. Rountree was a classic example of an ex-pat making good offshore!
Some of Rountree's more serious wildlife illustrations remind me of John Livingston Bull's work seen in the Saturday Evening Post.
A thought: You mention illustration in the field of advertising and it occurred to me that would make an interesting chapter in your series, particularly as an historic overview including perhaps lesser known illustrators within the ad industry, both in Europe and the UK. There are likely so many, it could be a mini-series in itself!
Hello again, and my aversion is to the saccharine cuteness of Mabel Lucy Attwell through to some of the Golden Books of the 1950s. Rountree's stuff may be endearing but it's robust and I think 'cute" would be doing it a major disservice, I think. I have already made a video about illustration in advertising a few years back, and I heartily recommend it. Thanks for your comments and observations.
@@petebeard Thanks. I'll backtrack through the series to find the one on illustration in advertising.
And yeah, Rountree is no Lucy Atwell!
Pure good cheer in art - indeed, what a rarity!
I'm glad you eppreciated his work. Thanks for the comment.
400 books! Incredible
That's what you call a legacy.
I love Rountree's work. A few years ago, I was trying to find some of his 'Alicias,' but I couldn't. I would like to know where I can find his bibliography.
Thank you for your work and for sharing these wonders with us. Rountree is an absolute genius.
Thanks a lot for youtr appreciation of this video. I struggled but failed to find a complete list of his books and fared even worse when it came to the many magazines he worked on. It's criminal that he should be so ignored given his contribution.
I have print on card I purchase back in 1981 when I lived in Kent. It’s a young Jack Russell and it’s still a favorite
Thanks for the comment.
We even had "rag books" in the U.S.! I remember them when I was way little in the 1960s!
I'm aware of them but don't recall them from my own distant childhood.
Excellent as usual
Many thanks for your comment.
Wow, another great video, but there was once small mistake at 13.09, the illustration was not of two Leopards, but Jaguars. I love my animals and have painted all of the big cats in the past. The way to judge Leopard by its spots, is to look the rosettes as they are called on the body, in a Leopard they are in clusters of 3-4, with no spots in the centre, in Jaguars the body rosettes are squarish with spots in the centre.
Oops - I should have spotted that. Get it? spots...
@@petebeard Note, Cheetahs never win rosettes, because they are easy to spot!
Alas, children's book illustration has gone largely minimalist-simplistic, good-natured humor is out of fashion, fantasy requires a dark element, and our age is less drawn to anthropomorphized animals than to animalized humans! But thank you for this very pleasant excursion into the work of a great illustrator!
It does feel like we took a wrong turning in terms of culture (and probably everyhing else) somewhere along the way. So much genuine beauty now ignored.
Bravo! I've enjoyed every UA-cam video you've produced since day one. Any chance of doing a video highlighting the illustrations on the crates of fruits and vegetables from back in the day? Even as a young kid in the Fifties I was fascinated by the images and colors. Thanks for all you do!
Thanks a lot for your appreciation and long lasting commitment to the channel. I'm sorry to disappoint you but the topic you suggest would defeat me. It's just too esoteric, and those who created the images completely unknown or forgotten. This is sadly frequently the case.
@@petebeard Thank you, Pete. Keep up the good work! I've learned a great deal from watching your videos and I look forward many more. All the best to you...
İt was a pleasure to wacth…
🍂🍁🍂
Thanks a lot for your positive comment.
I must confess, this it the type of illustrations I like best, though I look forward to all of them. Certainly, the river side picnic at 16:29 comes from Wind in the Willow. That is certainly Ratty and Mole.
Thanks for the comment. I still don't know where the image came from though, as he never illustrated an edition of the book. It must have been a one-off.
The reason for Rag Books was to introduce very young children to the idea of books. These rag books became very soft, I had several. They had no hard parts to harm, whereas 'real' books had sharp edges and corners, not only harmful for children but damaging to the sensitivities of bibliophiles who wished to early acquaint their you ones
Thanks a lot for your comment and explanation. Another viewer has suggested the revere notion that it was to protect the books from the little terrors. My own comment was intended more as a sarcastic reference to the negative effects on print quality.
Amazing.
Thanks for the comment.