Merry Christmas

Here is Robert Seymour, as Bob Cratchit, taking a slide down Cornhill on Christmas Eve, undaunted by Scrooge's bad attitude towards the holiday:

Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year, to all of you!

Another Hi-Res Promo Image

And so, just less than a week before Christmas, if you're looking for any last-minute Christmas gift ideas, Scrooge Studies is available as an eBook on Amazon. (Because of the number of images, it won't display on some e-readers. But Amazon has free apps to allow it to be read on laptop computers, etc., and the listing will show which e-readers are compatible.)

If you have already bought Scrooge Studies, thank you! And if you haven't, thank you for reading my blog. Here is a high-resolution version of one of my favorite images from the book: "There were great, round, pot-bellied baskets of chestnuts, shaped like the waistcoats of jolly old gentlemen, lolling at the doors, and tumbling out into the street in their apoplectic opulence."

Thank you for your interest. The above image is available free of charge, to anyone for any lawful, non-commercial use, as thanks for your interest in my work and to encourage sales of the eBook.

The listing on Amazon can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/Scrooge-Studies-Illustrated-Exploration-Christmas-ebook/dp/B07GZ9QJKX/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1545255581&sr=1-2&keywords=scrooge+studies

Happy Holidays!

A Book Recommendation

I have been re-reading Death and Mr Pickwick, by Stephen Jarvis, which deals with the evolution of British caricature and the origins of The Pickwick Papers. Jarvis presents, in the format of a novel, the theory that the artist Robert Seymour invented the character of Pickwick, and not Charles Dickens. I had come across the work of Seymour myself in 2016, as I was working on Scrooge Studies, and wondered about his influence on Dickens. I later had the good fortune to make the online acquaintance of Mr. Jarvis, who is much more knowledgable on the subject. Jarvis's arguments are quite compelling, and Death and Mr Pickwick ultimately influenced my illustrations for A Christmas Carol in a pretty significant way.

Even though I've read it before, Jarvis's writing is so fresh and engaging that it still feels new. There are numerous gems of phrases and sentences that have prompted me to start putting little paper sticky-flags in the margins, so that I can go back and find those anecdotes and pieces of language more easily.

And a little before page 200, I realized something - I was so pulled in to the story that I had forgotten I was reading a book.

Now that's some good writing.

As we approach Christmas, it's my distinct pleasure to recommend Mr. Jarvis's book. You don't need to have read The Pickwick Papers before, or to have previous knowledge of Dickens, to enjoy the book, but if you do know of any fans of The Pickwick Papers, Charles Dickens, or nineteenth-century Britain generally, this book would be an excellent Christmas gift.

You can find Death and Mr Pickwick online at Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Pickwick-Stephen-Jarvis-21-May-2015-Hardcover/dp/B011T884CW/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1544648845&sr=1-2&keywords=death+and+mr+pickwick), Barnes & Noble (https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/death-and-mr-pickwick-stephen-jarvis/1120160537?ean=9781250094667) and at many brick-and-mortar bookstores.

I have neither received nor sought any compensation for the above endorsement.

Interior of Strawberry Hill Meeting House

Today (December 2, 2018) there is a Christmas Stroll scheduled for the village of Yarmouth Port, here on the Puritanic Sands.  We have unfortunately encountered that Usual Event Around Here, often called Rain, which is probably discouraging people from attending.  My excuse is that I am occupied with Work Stuff and Christmas Decorating At Home.

Last year, a giant of American Theater passed away in Yarmouth Port - the brilliant set designer Helen Pond.  She and her professional and life partner, Herbert Senn, lived on Church Street in Y-Port, in an old Unitarian meeting house which they had lovingly and painstakingly restored and decorated over many years.  They had spent decades working together, and one of their most famous projects was their frequent work designing sets for Boston Ballet's annual Nutcracker.

The estate sale was yesterday and the day before; I had the opportunity to go inside once, about 20 years ago, for a Christmas party - the Pond-Senns used to throw these huge events every year, and I had the good fortune to be able to tag along with some friends who had been invited.  I felt a little intimidated so I did not introduce myself to the Pond-Senns.  

As for the estate sale, I knew that I probably wouldn't have the opportunity to see the interior again, so I went and took a few photographs.  My mom bought me a large coffee mug from the kitchen with an "H" on the side - and it still had a coffee drip on it!  I'm drinking from it now as I write this.

I in turn saw a "His" and "Hers" pair of mugs, also unwashed, which I bought for a young married couple I know.  I met them through theater work - she is a lighting designer, and he assists her - and I thought they should have a small piece of American Theater History with coffee and tea sometime.

Here are some photos of the interior of Strawberry Hill Meeting House, 17 Church Street, Yarmouth Port, Puritanic Sands, Massachusetts.  Most of the surfaces are flat - the Pond-Senns were masters of Trompe-l'oeil painting.

A "small" trompe-l'oeil ceiling:

Floorboards with a faux-marble checkerboard pattern:

The large trompe-l'oeil ceiling in the Great Hall:

The ceiling of the Great Hall, from the balcony, to give an idea of the scale of the room:

These two photos show some details of the Pond-Senns' painting skills: