Lynd Ward II

Later this year, the Library of America is producing a very handsome two-volume set of six 'woodcut novels' by the great Lynd Ward. I wrote more extensively about Ward here, so go there to see why he's worth pursuing. All I can say here is that, even though I own all of these books already, I'm sorely tempted by the loveliness of this set.

Before now, the Ward flame has been kept burning by Dover Publications, who have reprinted many of his woodcut novels, as well as his illustrated version of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, in editions that are both cheap and attractive (except for the sometimes over-loud typography on the front covers). If you want to see what the fuss is about, any of those volumes are well worth your time.

A Flock of Pelicans

A recent find is the Pelican Project at Things Magazine. It is an attempt to photograph all of the old Pelican (Penguin's non-fiction arm from the 1930s to the 1980s) covers: a very worthwhile exercise, as some of them are brilliant bits of design work. Here are just a few to give you a taste...

1958:


1961 (a cover by Larry Carter):


1962:


1964 (cover by Barry Trengove):


1966:


1970:


1971:


1972 (and the second cover is by our old friend Ralph Steadman):



1973:


1974 (cover by Clive Limpkin):


1975 (cover by Michael Morris):


1977:


In other news, A Journey Round My Skull has tracked down a copy of the Lynd Ward-illustrated Beowulf (for only $6!) which I discussed here. Go over there and be impressed.



Finally, I must wonder aloud if the people who Googled their way here looking for "erotic wet cement stories", "pubic stock photos" or the deeply mysterious "nifty loincloth story boy" found what they were looking for.

Lynd Ward

One of the most intriguing books I have recently read is Graphic Witness, a collection of four wordless graphic novels edited by George A. Walker. I bought it because I knew and love the work of Frans Masereel, one of the featured artists. I'll have to post about him later. An artist that was new to me is Lynd Ward.



Ward produced a number of wordless graphic novels, made up of a series of striking woodcuts in a sort of Expressionistic/Gothic/Art Deco style. Three of these have been recently republished in attractive, easily affordable editions by Dover, while another, Vertigo, seems to be out of print. A fifth, Song Without Words, I could not find a cover for.






Ward is probably best known, at least in his native US, for The Silver Pony, a children's book he wrote and illustrated.



He also did the covers (and illustrations) for a number of other children's books.













In addition, he has done covers and interior illustrations for a number of classic novels as well. The cover one without a title below is Richard Hughes' A High Wind in Jamaica. Of the Frankenstein, more to follow...








I found a couple of other books with his work on the covers.




Here are some of the marvellous interior illustrations for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.







Here are some of the pages from Gods' Man...




..from Mad Man's Drum...





..and from Song Without Words.





And here's an illustration for an edition of Beowulf that I can't trace.



Much more Ward can be found here, here and here (the last of which leads you to all of the Frankenstein illustrations--beware, though, that it also belongs to a mildly mad chap determined to prove that Percy Shelley wrote Frankenstein, rather than it being the work of Mary Shelley).

UPDATE: Will of A Journey Round My Skull has got his hands on a copy of the Beowulf (see comments), and has reproduced the beautiful artwork from it here. Go and look and marvel!