Posted on by Lynley

Depictions of Playfulness In Storytelling and Art

PLAYING ON SWINGS

  • From Rimskittle’s Book by Leroy F Jackson by Ruth Caroline Eger ca. 1900
  • Duane Bryers (1911 – 2012) hilda on tyre swing
  • Mabel Lucie Attwell
  • Woodcut illustration from Robert Frost ‘New Hampshire’ 1923
  • Playing in the Barn, Fanny Cory Cooney

PUTTING ON A SHOW

Czech illustrator Jiri Trnka (1912-1969) illustration for Andersen's Fairy Tales 1969
Czech illustrator Jiri Trnka (1912-1969) illustration for Andersen’s Fairy Tales 1969
Charles Hunt - Children Acting the ‘Play Scene’ from “Hamlet,” Act II, Scene ii 1863
Charles Hunt – Children Acting the ‘Play Scene’ from “Hamlet,” Act II, Scene ii 1863
John Burr - Little Soldier
John Burr – Little Soldier

FLYING A KITE

  • Maginel Wright Enright Barney (American, 1881-1966) kite
    Maginel Wright Enright Barney (American, 1881-1966)
  • Woman’s World, March 1938. Art by Maginel Wright Barney
  • Arthur Rackham for Rip Van Winkle 1904

PARTY GAMES

William Heath Robinson (English,1872-1944) - The Egg and Spoon Race
William Heath Robinson (English,1872-1944) – The Egg and Spoon Race

PLAYING AT THE SEASIDE

Postcard by Muriel Dawson (1897-1974)
Postcard by Muriel Dawson (1897-1974)

PLAYING GROWN-UPS

  • From Rimskittle's Book by Leroy F Jackson by Ruth Caroline Eger ca. 1900
    From Rimskittle’s Book by Leroy F Jackson by Ruth Caroline Eger ca. 1900
  • Marie-Madeleine Dauphin (Franc-Brossier) 1878-1942

SKATING

Konstantin Somov Winter. Skating Rink, 1915
Konstantin Somov Winter. Skating Rink, 1915
Charles Lees – Skaters, a Scene on Duddingston Loch
Skating on the Serpentine
Skating on the Serpentine
The Little Golden Funny Book, pictures by J.P.Miller, 1950
The Little Golden Funny Book, pictures by J.P.Miller, 1950
  • Wiebke Hasselmann
  • Robert Wagt
  • Marco Somà
  • Johanna Wright

DANCING AND SINGING

  • Nikolaos Gyzis (Greek, 1842 - 1901)
    Nikolaos Gyzis (Greek, 1842 – 1901)
  • Richard Scarry’s Best Mother Goose Ever London Bridge game 1970
  • Marie-Madeleine Dauphin (Franc-Brossier) 1878-1942

TOYS OF YESTERYEAR

Ayton, Robert, The Ladybird Book of TOYS AND GAMES TO MAKE by James Webster, 1966
Ayton, Robert, The Ladybird Book of TOYS AND GAMES TO MAKE by James Webster, 1966
  • Gretel on her stilts. Illustration by Emma Cooke (1889-1975) for 1926 edition of Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates, written in 1865 by Mary Mapes Dodge
    Gretel on her stilts. Illustration by Emma Cooke (1889-1975) for 1926 edition of Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates, written in 1865 by Mary Mapes Dodge
  • Marie-Madeleine Dauphin (Franc-Brossier) 1878-1942 marbles
  • John Haynes-Williams – Taking Aim

FUN AT THE FAIR

John L. Wimbush (1854 – 1914)
John L. Wimbush (1854 – 1914)

TABLETOP GAMES

New Yorker magazine cover July 1973 Gerhard Richter
New Yorker magazine cover July 1973 Gerhard Richter

SPORT

  • Lady Cricketers – A Good Catch 1889
  • The English Lady Cricketers – Miss Stanley Batting
  • Marie-Madeleine Dauphin (Franc-Brossier) 1878-1942 badminton
    Marie-Madeleine Dauphin (Franc-Brossier) 1878-1942 badminton
  • The Tabby-Fur Family written by Tracey May, illustrated by Hilda Boswell, published by R. A. Publishing Company, London, 1948
Harry Brooker - The Tug of War
Harry Brooker – The Tug of War
A Christmas Dance - The Lancers 1889
A Christmas Dance – The Lancers 1889
Members-of-a-Ladies-Hockey-Club-at-play
Members-of-a-Ladies-Hockey-Club-at-play

FOOD GAMES

Charles West Cope – Breakfast Time, Morning Games

HIDE AND SEEK

  • The Little People by Garth Williams (1912-1996) c1948 an unpublished illustration for Housekeeping Magazine
  • Edna Eicke (American, 1919-1979) 1948

CARDS

Frederick Goodall - Old Maid
Frederick Goodall – Old Maid
Harry Brooker - A Critical Moment
Harry Brooker – A Critical Moment

Header illustration: Sports Day Illustration Racey Helps (1913-1970)

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