Of the Decorative Illustration of Books Old and New

Crane, Walter, 1845-1915Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 4.2
Word count
211K words
Chapters
22

Tags

English Originals Design Book DecorationCrafts ArtIllustration ArtDesign HistoryIllustrated GuideTraditional Aesthetics

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Of the Decorative Illustration of Books Old and New by Walter CraneAuthor: Crane, Walter, 1845-1915,Language: English, Class: Z: Bibliography, Library science, Release Date: Jul 16, 2012

Editor's review

Walter Crane's Of the Decorative Illustration of Books Old and New is an English-language work discussing decorative book illustration, classified under bibliography and library science and released free by Project Gutenberg. Crane was himself an illustrator, which gives the book a practitioner's perspective: it is not merely about the appearance of books but also about the relationship between illustration and layout, text and ornament. For readers interested in the history of book design, illustration art and printing traditions, it offers an early framework for discussion and serves as a reference text for understanding ideas about book decoration around the nineteenth century. As a public-domain e-book, it is easy to search and excerpt, but it may lack high-resolution plates in modern typesetting; readers should consult other illustrated editions or materials alongside it. It is better suited to research-oriented or hobby reading than to those seeking light stories or a systematic textbook.

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Reading tips

  1. Read the table of contents first to grasp the author's main threads on book decoration, then select key chapters for close reading.
  2. Consult histories of book illustration while reading to compensate for plates that may be unclear in the electronic edition.
  3. When taking notes, record the author's judgments on the relationship between ornament and text for comparison with modern practice.
  4. If English reading is difficult, learn about Crane's background as an illustrator first, then read slowly in sections.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
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  21. 21
  22. 22

FAQ

What is this book mainly about? According to the information, it discusses decorative illustration in old and new books and is classified under bibliography and library science. Its content centers on book illustration and decoration and is suitable for readers interested in the history of book design and illustration traditions, rather than for those seeking fiction or popular reading.
Who is the author, Walter Crane? The information only notes that he is the author of this book, with dates 1845–1915. From the title and classification, he is connected to the subject of decorative book illustration. Readers who want a full biography and list of works should consult other reliable sources; the information provided here does not elaborate.
Does the electronic edition include illustrations? The information does not state whether the electronic edition contains complete plates. Project Gutenberg e-books are primarily text-based, and the presentation of illustrations depends on the specific edition. If you are studying the illustrations themselves, it is advisable also to look for other editions with plates or related catalogues.
Is it suitable as a design textbook? It is closer to a historical discussion than a modern design tutorial. The information shows its classification as bibliography and library science, so it is suitable as background reading and conceptual reference. If you need systematic technical training, pair it with modern design textbooks and case studies.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Crane, Walter, 1845-1915 Author

Walter Crane (1845–1915) was an English illustrator, decorative artist and writer; his dates are given in his name, while other biographical details are limited in publicly available sources. The library holds twenty-one of his works, spanning nursery-rhyme collections, alphabet books, fables and writings on decorative art. Representative titles include The Baby's Opera, The Baby's Own Aesop, The Absurd ABC, An Alphabet of Old Friends and Of the Decorative Illustration of Books Old and New. His children's books typically pair verse with pictures in a lively, highly decorative style that is both playful and instructive, while his essays discuss tradition and reform in book illustration and ornament. These works have had a lasting influence on children's literature and book decoration and are often grouped under inspirational growth.