Arthur Rackham

About the artist

Arthur Rackham (19 September 1867 – 6 September 1939) was a renowned English book illustrator, acclaimed for his imaginative and evocative art. He was instrumental during the Golden Age of British book illustration—a time when some of literature’s most memorable illustrated editions were produced. His unmistakable style has made a lasting impact on the field of illustration.

Rackham’s artwork is recognized for its elaborate pen and ink drawings enhanced with delicate washes of watercolour. This technique bestowed his illustrations with a dreamy, ethereal atmosphere, rendering them instantly distinguishable. His singular style drew on experience gained during his formative years as a journalistic illustrator, which cultivated his sharp sense of detail and composition.

Over his prolific career, Arthur Rackham provided illustrations for numerous literary classics, captivating readers across generations. Among his most celebrated projects are his illustrations for "Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens," "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," and "Grimm's Fairy Tales." His works frequently featured fantastical themes, striking character depictions, and lush, atmospheric scenery.

Today, Rackham's legacy stands as one of the early twentieth century’s most influential illustrators. His distinctive combination of technical mastery, imaginative vision, and narrative intricacy continues to inspire both artists and admirers of books. His illustrations are now prized by collectors, enduring as a powerful testament to the lasting appeal of visual storytelling.

Arthur Rackham

‘They crowed round him, eyeing him from head to foot with great curiosity.’ (1905)

Fairies are all more or less in hiding until dusk (1913)

Bertalda (1912)

‘He took his place once more on the bench at the inn-door’ (1910)

Reciting for their amusement all the epitaphs on the tombstones

Pandora and Epimetheus

For years he had been quietly filling his stocking (1913)

Alas! dear Falada, there thou hangest (1920)

What, indeed, could she do (1911)

The Green Dragon (1910)

Jack sneaks into the giant’s house

‘Blow, blow, little breeze, And Conrad’s hat seize.’ (1920)

Witches and warlocks, ghosts, goblins and ghouls (1911)

Ring a ring o’ roses. (1912)

Wandering about and ‘boo-hoo’-ing. (1911)

Marvellous tales of haunted fields, and haunted brooks, and haunted houses

Undine outside the window (1912)

He could see Undine beneath the crystal vault (1911)

The horn, at the gate of the Barbican tower, was blown with a loud twenty-trumpeter power. (1911)

A chrysanthemum heard her, and said pointedly, ‘Hoity-toity, what is this’ (1913)

There now arose a mighty storm and he was tossed this way and that (1906)

Into the bottomless pit he fell slap. (1911)

Peter Pan is the fairies’ orchestra (1913)

Berthalda in the Black Valley (1912)

Little Thumbling and his brothers find their way home

Mother Goose

The little man had seated himself in the centre of the circle upon the large skull (1911)

They’d such very odd heads and such very odd tails. (1911)

‘She hath a mark, like a violet, between her shoulders, and another like it on the instep of her left foot.’ (1912)

He bounced up and down, and so fearful a frown contracted his brow, you’d have thought he’d been blind. (1911)

The Kensington Gardens are in London, where the King lives (1913)

And the maids cried ‘good gracious, how very tenacious!’ (1911)

The Cat and the Eagle

‘Little niece,’ said Kühleborn, ‘forget not that I am here with thee as a guide.’ (1912)

The princess and the pea

The Wren and the Bear (1902)

The moment her shadowy form met his view he…made one grasshopper spring to the door–and was gone! (1911)

Building the house for Maimie (1913)

Hey! up the chimney, lass! Hey after you! (1911)

‘The rain always made a point of setting in just as he had some outdoor work to do’ (1905)

When a score of ewes had brought in a remarkable profit. (1911)

Bursting forth like a legion of young imps

These tricky fairies sometimes change the board on a ball night (1913)

She did not mind death, but she could not stand pinching. (1911)

A Squirrel and a Crow (1913)

Sir Thomas, her Lord, was stout of limb. (1911)

Becuma of the White Skin (1920)

Put his strange case before old Solomon Caw (1913)

Andromeda

The Witch’s Pool (1904)

Arthur Rackham

‘They crowed round him, eyeing him from head to foot with great curiosity.’ (1905)

Fairies are all more or less in hiding until dusk (1913)

Bertalda (1912)

‘He took his place once more on the bench at the inn-door’ (1910)

Reciting for their amusement all the epitaphs on the tombstones

Pandora and Epimetheus

For years he had been quietly filling his stocking (1913)

Alas! dear Falada, there thou hangest (1920)

What, indeed, could she do (1911)

The Green Dragon (1910)

Jack sneaks into the giant’s house

‘Blow, blow, little breeze, And Conrad’s hat seize.’ (1920)

Witches and warlocks, ghosts, goblins and ghouls (1911)

Ring a ring o’ roses. (1912)

Wandering about and ‘boo-hoo’-ing. (1911)

Marvellous tales of haunted fields, and haunted brooks, and haunted houses

Undine outside the window (1912)

He could see Undine beneath the crystal vault (1911)

The horn, at the gate of the Barbican tower, was blown with a loud twenty-trumpeter power. (1911)

A chrysanthemum heard her, and said pointedly, ‘Hoity-toity, what is this’ (1913)

There now arose a mighty storm and he was tossed this way and that (1906)

Into the bottomless pit he fell slap. (1911)

Peter Pan is the fairies’ orchestra (1913)

Berthalda in the Black Valley (1912)

Little Thumbling and his brothers find their way home

Mother Goose

The little man had seated himself in the centre of the circle upon the large skull (1911)

They’d such very odd heads and such very odd tails. (1911)