Arthur Rackham was an illustrator in the late 19th and early 20th century. He was born in London in 1867. He began studying at the Lambeth School of Art at the age of 18, and soon found his passion and calling. …

Rackham’s pieces were known for their luxurious use of color and keen attention to detail. His styles ranged easily from vivid, bright splashes of color to more muted, subtle tones. He became a member of the Royal Watercolour Society and mastered the watercolor method of painting, seen in many of his works. Many of the books Rackham illustrated include both his black and white, and color plates. Some, such as Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Wonder Book, include Rackham’s experimentation with partially colored prints, similar to the effect seen with Japanese woodblock art.

Much of Rackham’s work depicts gnomes, fairies, goblins or other creatures from mythology, folklore or fable. His work has been an inspiration to many, including film director Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth) and modern illustrator Brian Froud. Beyond the fantastical natural world, Rackham also found inspiration in unusual places, creating his own artistic interpretations of pieces from music and theater, such as Wagner’s operas, or Shakespeare plays. [read more]

Self Portrait Fairy Undine Outside the Window Undine Lost in the Danube Tree The Song of the Lark The Two Corbies King Thrushbeard Bifrost Freya Goddess of Youth Alice The Mad Hatter's Tea Party Calling Shapes and Beckoning Shadows Fairies in the Spring Little Red Riding Hood The Valiant Little Tailor Pan the Friend and Helper Wagner's The Ring Rumplestiltskin Dancing Fairies Untitled Fairies in the Garden Changeling A Crowned Merman Titania Woman Crow Fairy Tree Mermaids Peter Pan Fairies Waken Hansel and Gretel The Fish King and the Dog Fish The Legend of Sleepy Hollow Traveller Never So Weary, Never so Woeful Rip Van Winkle's Daughter and Granddaughter Rip Van Winkle The Three Bears Winter in Kensington Garden Daphne Lancelot Fighting Dragon Self Portrait Saint Nicholas Catskin Iris with her Plumed Bow Girl with Tree The Frolic of the Rhine-Maidens Alice in Wonderland Alice in Wonderland Alice in Wonderland The Trees and the Axe Instantly They lay Still, All Turned to Stone The Rhine Maidens get the Ring Valkyrie Snow White Prince Fontaine Fairies Siegfried and Mime The Ring - Valkyrie Rat and Mole Having a Picnic Maid Maleen Little Red Riding Hood Siegfried Fights Fafnir One Aloof Stands Sentinel - A Midsummer Night's Dream The Frog Prince The Night Before Christmas Thor The Ring - Odin and Brunhilde Goblin Market Undine Underwater Mermaids The Ring of Nibelung Siegfried Alberich and the Rhine Maidens How arthur drew his sword Excalibur for the first time The Goose Girl Rapunzel Fairies in the Sky