Edward Lear

Edward Lear (1812–1888) was a British artist, illustrator and poet, born in Holloway, London, the youngest of 21 children, and raised by his eldest sister. He made his early living by drawing bird plates, including work for the Earl of Derby's menagerie, and his parrot illustrations were notably precise; he later turned to landscape painting and travelled in Italy, Greece, Egypt and India. He never married and died in San Remo, Italy, in 1888. Lear is best known for his nonsense verse, including A Book of Nonsense, Nonsense Songs, More Nonsense and Laughable Lyrics. Blending absurd imagination, playful rhythm and his own illustrations, his work combines verbal games with strange imagery and has deeply influenced later children's literature and humorous poetry.