The Art of Beatrix Potter

By Shirley Raye Redmond

The beloved children’s author and illustrator of such time honored classics as The Tale of Peter Rabbit, has often been portrayed as shy and withdrawn. They say she was sweet natured, but lonely, with no close friends. So she turned to animals for companionship, all the while hating her London home, which was ruled by her overbearing parents.

But the truth of the matter is that her parents were no more overbearing than any other Victorian parents of their day. Although Beatrix was not outgoing, she was quite close with her younger brother and her grandparents. It’s true she preferred the country to the city. Each summer her father rented a home in the country so the family could spend time outdoors, taking long walks and puttering in the garden.

Yes, she loved animals, but did you know that occasionally when her pets died, she boiled their carcasses in a pot to strip away the meat and gristle so she could study their bones and sketch them? By the time she was eighteen, she’d made up her mind to be a painter. Her parents were not pleased. However, when her brother Bertram, eventually began earning his living as an artist, Mr. and Mrs. Potter were proud and thrilled. Bertram tried to introduce his talented sister to important art critics, but they were not interested in her paintings.

Beatrix was in her mid-thirties when she started writing “picture letters” to children of her acquaintance. No one would publish those either. Few people know that Miss Potter self-published The Tale of Peter Rabbit, draining her savings account to pay for 250 copies. At 47, she married William Heelis, a shy country solicitor and got what she wanted at last—she had her character Pigling Bland say it: “I wish I could have a little garden and grow potatoes.”

And those art critics? They’d be surprised, no doubt, to see Beatrix’s collection of exquisite mushroom and other fungi paintings on display today in the British Museum.

Beatrix’s favorite story of the ones she’d written was The Tailor of Gloucester, inspired by entries she’d discovered in her grandmother’s journal about clothing and customs of the day. My favorite is Squirrel Nutkin.

Do you have a favorite Potter tale?
 

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An award-winning writer and frequent conference speaker, Shirley Raye Redmond is the author of three inspirational novels, PRUDENCE PURSUED, VIPER’S NEST, and AMANDA’S BEAU, as well as two dozen children’s books, including LEWIS & CLARK: A PRAIRIE DOG FOR THE PRESIDENT (Random House), which was a Children’s Book of the Month Club selection. Touch bases at shirleyrayeredmond.com or Facebook