Angela Barrett (born 1955) is a British artist and illustrator. She has illustrated

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

, children's books and novels, including various

fairytales A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cu ...

Life and career

Barrett grew up sewing and drawing. She attended Thurrock Technical College and worked in

retail display Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

. She then attended Maidstone art school and later the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It of ...

. Barrett's first illustrated book was ''The King, the Cat and the Fiddle'', published in 1983 and written by

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi or Jehudi (Hebrew: יהודי, endonym for Jew) is a common Hebrew name: * Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999), violinist and conductor ** Yehudi Menuhin School, a music school in Surrey, England ** Who's Yehoodi?, a catchphrase referring to t ...

and Christopher Hope. In 2013,

stamps Stamp or Stamps or Stamping may refer to: Official documents and related impressions * Postage stamp, used to indicate prepayment of fees for public mail * Ration stamp, indicating the right to rationed goods * Revenue stamp, used on documents to ...

depicting novels by Jane Austen were illustrated by Barrett and released by

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for the 200th anniversary of the novel ''

Pride and Prejudice ''Pride and Prejudice'' is an 1813 novel of manners by Jane Austen. The novel follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the dynamic protagonist of the book who learns about the repercussions of hasty judgments and comes to appreci ...

''.

Style

Barrett's work is mainly created using

watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to ...

gouache Gouache (; ), body color, or opaque watercolor is a water-medium paint consisting of natural pigment, water, a binding agent (usually gum arabic or dextrin), and sometimes additional inert material. Gouache is designed to be opaque. Gouache ...

, colored pencils, and ink. She is known for her

period piece A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and sw ...

s and the research she applies to her work. For the 1998 book ''Joan of Arc'', she researched 15th-century art and

illuminated manuscripts An illuminated manuscript is a formally prepared document where the text is often supplemented with flourishes such as borders and miniature illustrations. Often used in the Roman Catholic Church for prayers, liturgical services and psalms, th ...

to create a

visual style In the visual arts, style is a "...distinctive manner which permits the grouping of works into related categories" or "...any distinctive, and therefore recognizable, way in which an act is performed or an artifact made or ought to be performed ...

for the story, using motifs inspired by

medieval French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intellig ...

fabrics. She uses photographs as reference for her compositions. Barrett works in a realistic style with distorted figures, proportions and

perspectives Perspective may refer to: Vision and mathematics * Perspectivity, the formation of an image in a picture plane of a scene viewed from a fixed point, and its modeling in geometry ** Perspective (graphical), representing the effects of visual persp ...

. Joanna Carey for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' stated Barrett's illustrations have "a stillness and a quiet atmospheric intensity..." Valerie Coghlan stated in ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature'' that Barrett's "slightly elongated figures and faces and distorted perspective are frequently used to heighten tension and impart a sense of mystery."

Illustrated works

*''The King, the Cat and the Fiddle'' (1983), by

and Christopher Hope *''The Wild Swans'' (c. 1984) by

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consist ...

*The Dragon wore Pink (1985) by Christopher Hope *''Through the Kitchen Window'' (c. 1986) by

Susan Hill Dame Susan Hill, Lady Wells, (born 5 February 1942) is an English author of fiction and non-fiction works. Her novels include ''The Woman in Black'', '' The Mist in the Mirror'', and '' I'm the King of the Castle'', for which she received t ...

*''The Snow Queen'' (1988) by

, translated by

Naomi Lewis Naomi Lewis (3 September 1911 – 5 July 2009) was a British poet, essayist, literary critic, anthologist and reteller of stories for children. She is particularly noted for her translations of the Danish children's author, Hans Christian An ...

*''Proud Knight, Fair Lady: The Twelve Lays of Marie de France'' (1989), translated by Naomi Lewis *''The Hidden House'' (1990) *''Snow White'' (1991), retelling by Josephine Poole *''Beware, Beware'' (1993), by Susan Hill *''The Ice Palace'' (1994), by

Angela McAllister Angela may refer to: Places * Angela, Montana * Angela Lake, in Volusia County, Florida * Lake Angela, in Lyon Township, Oakland County, Michigan * Lake Angela, the reservoir impounded by the source dam of the South Yuba River Fiction * Ange ...

*''The Random House Book of Stories from the Ballet'' (1995) by

Geraldine McCaughrean Geraldine McCaughrean ( ; born 6 June 1951) is a British children's novelist. She has written more than 170 books, including ''Peter Pan in Scarlet'' (2004), the official sequel to ''Peter Pan'' commissioned by Great Ormond Street Hospital, t ...

*''The Emperor's New Clothes'' (1997), by Hans Christian Andersen, translated by

*''Joan of Arc'' (1998) by

Josephine Poole Josephine may refer to: People * Josephine (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Josephine (singer), a Greek pop singer Places * Josephine, Texas, United States * Mount Josephine (disambiguation) * Josephine Cou ...

*''Rocking Horse Land and Other Classic Tales of Dolls and Toys'' (2000), by Hans Christian Andersen, compiled by Naomi Lewis *''Through the Tempests Dark and Wild: a Story of Mary Shelley, Creator of Frankenstein'' (2003) by Sharon Darrow *''Anne Frank'' (2005) by Josephine Poole *''Beauty and the Beast'' (2006), retelling by

Max Eilenberg Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) (1 ...

*''The Snow Goose'' (2007 edition), by

Paul Gallico Paul William Gallico (July 26, 1897 – July 15, 1976) was an American novelist and short story and sports writer.Ivins, Molly,, ''The New York Times'', July 17, 1976. Retrieved Oct. 25, 2020. Many of his works were adapted for motion pictu ...

*''Sylvie and the Songman'' (2009) by Tim Binding *''The Night Fairy'' (2010) by

Laura Amy Schlitz Laura Amy Schlitz is an American author of children's literature. She is a librarian and storyteller at the Park School of Baltimore in Brooklandville, Maryland. She received the 2008 Newbery Medal for her children's book entitled '' Good Master ...

*''The Most Wonderful Thing in the World?'' (2015), by

Vivian French Vivian June Isoult French (born 1945) is a British writer of picture book texts, novels, plays, and non-fiction for children and young adults. She has written more than 250 books – including the picture book ''Oliver's Vegetables'' (1995), The ...

*''The Restless Girls'' (2019) by

Jessie Burton Jessica Kathryn Burton (born 17 August 1982)Inside back cover of 2015 Picador UK paperback edition of ''The Miniaturist'' is an English author and actress. , she has published four novels, ''The Miniaturist'', ''The Muse'', ''The Confession'', ...

Awards and honors

*1991 W. H. Smith Illustration Award for ''The Hidden House'' by Martin Waddell *1993 Shortlist for the

Kate Greenaway Medal The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) ...

for ''Beware, Beware!'' by Susan Hill *1998

Nestlé Smarties Book Prize The Nestlé Children's Book Prize, and Nestlé Smarties Book Prize for a time, was a set of annual awards for British children's books that ran from 1985 to 2007. It was administered by BookTrust, an independent charity that promotes books and ...

for ''Can It Be True?''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett, Angela 1955 births Living people 20th-century British women artists 21st-century British women artists British illustrators British women illustrators British children's book illustrators Alumni of the Royal College of Art Watercolorists Women watercolorists