Harold Robert Millar (1869–1942) was a prominent and prolific Scottish graphic artist and illustrator of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is best known for his illustrations of children's books and fantasy literature. "His work...has a lively, imaginative charm and a distinctive sense of design."

Life and Work

A native of

Dumfriesshire Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries (''Siorrachd Dhùn Phris'' in Gaelic) is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county. I ...

, Millar first pursued civil engineering before deciding upon an artistic career. He then studied at the Wolverhampton Art School and the Birmingham School of and established his career as a magazine illustrator with ''

Punch Punch commonly refers to: * Punch (combat), a strike made using the hand closed into a fist * Punch (drink), a wide assortment of drinks, non-alcoholic or alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice Punch may also refer to: Places * Pun ...

'', ''Good Words'', and other periodicals of the day. Millar illustrated fables for the Strand Magazine, and anthologies of tales, ''The Golden Fairy Book'', ''The Silver Fairy Book'', ''The Diamond Fairy Book'', and ''The Ruby Fairy Book''. He illustrated books by a wide range of British authors of his time, including Sir

Arthur Quiller-Couch Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (; 21 November 186312 May 1944) was a British writer who published using the pseudonym Q. Although a prolific novelist, he is remembered mainly for the monumental publication '' The Oxford Book of English Verse ...

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

, and

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

. He had an extensive working relationship with

E. Nesbit Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English writer and poet, who published her books for children as E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 such books. She was also a political activist a ...

, and has been called "the most sympathetic and perhaps the most talented of her illustrators."

Marcus Crouch Marcus Crouch (12 February 1913 – 24 April 1996) was an English librarian, and an influential commentator on and reviewer of children's books.Sheila Ray. "Obituary: Marcus Crouch", ''Children's Literature Abstracts'', Issues 92-95, Internation ...

, ''Treasure Seekers and Borrowers: Children's Books in Britain, 1900–1960'', London, The Library Association, 1962; p. 15. Apart from fantasy and children's books, Millar drew pictures for works like Kate Lawson's ''Highways and Homes of Japan'' (1910) and Arthur Radclyffe Dugmore's ''African Jungle Life'' (1928). Millar was a noted collector of Eastern art and exotic and ancient weapons; he employed his interest and knowledge in these areas in his artwork. A partial list of the books Millar illustrated includes: *

George Eliot Mary Ann Evans (22 November 1819 – 22 December 1880; alternatively Mary Anne or Marian), known by her pen name George Eliot, was an English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrot ...

's ''

Scenes of Clerical Life ''Scenes of Clerical Life'' is George Eliot's first published work of fiction, a collection of three short stories, published in book form; it was the first of her works to be released under her famous pseudonym. The stories were first publis ...

'' * H. Rider Haggard's ''The Brethren'' * Newman Harding's ''The Little Black Monkey'' and ''The Little Grey Pedlar'' *

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associated with that t ...

's ''

Tanglewood Tales ''Tanglewood Tales for Boys and Girls'' (1853) is a book by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne, a sequel to ''A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys''. It is a re-writing of well-known Greek myths in a volume for children. Overview The book includes t ...

'' * Howard Angus Kennedy's ''The New World Fairy Book'' and ''The Canadian Fairy Book'' * Kipling's ''

Kim Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese f ...

'' and ''

Puck of Pook's Hill ''Puck of Pook's Hill'' is a fantasy book by Rudyard Kipling, published in 1906, containing a series of short stories set in different periods of English history. It can count both as historical fantasy – since some of the stories told of ...

'' * Captain Marryat's ''Frank Mildmay'', ''

The Phantom Ship ''The Phantom Ship'' (1839) is a Gothic novel by Frederick Marryat which explores the legend of the ''Flying Dutchman''. Plot introduction The plot concerns the quest of Philip Vanderdecken of Terneuzen in the Netherlands to save his father ...

'', and ''Snarley-Yow'' * Mrs. Molesworth's ''Peterkin'' * James Morier's ''The Adventures of Hajji Baba of Ispahan'' * Edith Nesbit's ''The Book of Dragons'', ''

The Enchanted Castle ''The Enchanted Castle'' is a children's fantasy novel by Edith Nesbit first published in 1907. Plot summary The enchanted castle of the title is a country estate in the West Country seen through the eyes of three children, Jerry, Jimmy, and ...

'', ''

Five Children and It ''Five Children and It'' is a children's novel by English author E. Nesbit. It was originally published in 1902 in the '' Strand Magazine'' under the general title ''The Psammead, or the Gifts'', with a segment appearing each month from April ...

'', ''

The House of Arden ''The House of Arden'' is a novel for children written by the English author E. Nesbit and published in 1908. Plot summary A boy named Edred Arden inherits the title of Lord Arden and the dilapidated Arden Castle. He and his sister Elfrida sear ...

'', '' The Magic City'', ''

The Phoenix and the Carpet ''The Phoenix and the Carpet'' is a fantasy novel for children, written by E. Nesbit and first published in 1904. It is the second in a trilogy of novels that begins with '' Five Children and It'' (1902), and follows the adventures of the sam ...

'', ''

The Story of the Amulet ''The Story of the Amulet'' is a novel for children, written in 1906 by English author Edith Nesbit. It is the final part of a trilogy of novels that also includes ''Five Children and It'' (1902) and '' The Phoenix and the Carpet'' (1904). ...

'', and other works *

Thomas Love Peacock Thomas Love Peacock (18 October 1785 – 23 January 1866) was an English novelist, poet, and official of the East India Company. He was a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and they influenced each other's work. Peacock wrote satirical novels, ...

's ''

Headlong Hall ''Headlong Hall'' is a novella by Thomas Love Peacock, his first long work of fiction, written in 1815 and published in 1816. As in his later novel ''Crotchet Castle ''Crotchet Castle'' is the sixth novel by Thomas Love Peacock, first publis ...

'' and ''

Nightmare Abbey ''Nightmare Abbey'' is an 1818 novella by Thomas Love Peacock which makes good-natured fun of contemporary literary trends. The novel ''Nightmare Abbey'' was Peacock's third long work of fiction to be published. It was written in late March and ...

'' * Quiller-Couch's ''Fairy Tales Far and Near'' * Tetta Ward's ''My Fairy Tale Book''

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Millar, H. R. Scottish illustrators British children's book illustrators Fantasy artists 1869 births 1940 deaths Scottish children's book illustrators