NewsBite

Winnie-the-Pooh and Friends: Ernest H. Shepard originals at TMAG

Original Winnie the Pooh sketches by Ernest H. Shepard are on display at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery.

Ernest H. Shepard’s Hippy Happy Bthithday, left, Teddy Bear, from AA Milne’s When We Were Very Young (1923-24)
Ernest H. Shepard’s Hippy Happy Bthithday, left, Teddy Bear, from AA Milne’s When We Were Very Young (1923-24)

In 1981, the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery took a call about a possible donation. Would it be interested in 29 original drawings by British artist Ernest Howard Shepard, the illustrator who brought to life the characters in Winnie the Pooh and the The Wind in the Willows?

The gallery didn’t have to be asked twice. The works were donated by Frances Carroll, Shepard’s Tasmanian sister-in-law, who had over decades collected the drawings received as gifts.

The works are on display at TMAG for the first time in 22 years in Winnie-the-Pooh and Friends, an exhibition of Shepard’s drawings.

The English artist created the illustrations to complement AA Milne’s classic Poohseries, which was first published in 1926. The exhibition — much of it is hung at child’s height — includes notes from the artist explaining his handiwork.

“This clock was invented and drawn by Ernest H. Shepard,” reads one drawing’s accompanying scrawl, “for his friends Pooh and Piglet to encourage them in habits of punctuality.”

The exhibition runs until August 20.

Tim Douglas
Tim DouglasEditor, Review

Tim Douglas is editor of The Weekend Australian Review. He began at The Australian in 2006, and has worked as a reporter, features writer and editor on a range of newspapers including The Scotsman, The Edinburgh Evening News and Scots national arts magazine The List.Instagram: timdouglasaus

Add your comment to this story

To join the conversation, please Don't have an account? Register

Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/winniethepooh-and-friends-ernest-h-shepard-originals-at-tmag/news-story/c4f44f0bb8028bdf9c9e682a738ebd91