The Many Faces of Bewick and the Bicentenary of his Water Birds

‘The Many Faces of Bewick and the Bicentenary of his Water Birds’ in Transactions of the Natural History Society of Northumbria, Volume 65 part 3, March 2007 (available from the Natural History Society of Northumbria, Hancock Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4PT). 'The Many Faces of Bewick' (pp.135 – 224) is a complete catalogue raisonné illustrated in colour of all the known portraits of Thomas Bewick and his associates, by June Holmes, archivist to the Natural History Society. ‘The Bicentenary of Thomas Bewick’s History of British Birds’ (pp 225 – 254) is an illustrated essay celebrating the 1804 publication of the Water Birds, by David Gardner-Medwin.

Copies of this book can be bought from June Holmes, NHSN Archivist. (£7.50 + p&p)

Bewick Studies

The Bewick Society was delighted to publish its own book in December 2003: Bewick Studies, Essays in Celebration of the 250^th Anniversary of the birth of Thomas Bewick, edited by David Gardner-Medwin, with various authors including Ian Bain and Nigel Tattersfield. This was accomplished with funding from Frank Sharratt and Kerr-McGee North Sea (UK) Ltd. Copies of this prestigious volume were sent free to all Bewick Society members who had joined before November 2003. The book was set in type by Iain Bain using Monotype Bulmer.

Further copies of the book are still available from the Bewick Society at £20 + £2.50 p&p. Contact June Holmes, The Bewick Society, Hancock Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4PT or nhsn@ncl.ac.uk

Nature’s Engraver – A Life of Thomas Bewick

Jenny Uglow, London: Faber and Faber, 2006 (hardback edition); 2007 (paperback edition). This is better illustrated than any previous biography of Bewick, with one hundred vignettes, fifty figures and thirty three colour illustrations including some of Bewick's watercolour artwork. There is a full list of the workshop apprentices, a bibliography, notes and index. Reviewers have all commented on its readability, comprehensive coverage and penetrating grasp of the relevant cultural history.

The world in miniature - Guardian review

Thomas Bewick in Newcastle: A guide to the places in and around the city associated with the artist. (A2 folded 2x6 to produce 24 pages)

The Society created, as part of the 250^th anniversary celebrations, a leaflet, which all Bewick enthusiasts will find fascinating. We were delighted to receive a 'Heritage Lottery Fund Awards for All' grant to pay for the printing.

This fold-out leaflet is designed to be used as a guide to exploring the city on foot and draws attention to many little-known places such as the sites of the various homes where Bewick lived, his workshops and his parish church, favourite pubs, and the publishing houses where his works were printed. The text has been written to be of interest to a wide public while also reflecting the results of careful historical research.

It is illustrated with nine drawings by the Newcastle artist, Mrs Joan Holding, as well as a number of engravings by Bewick and his pupils. There is a reproduction of part of the map surveyed in 1770 by the Newcastle cartographer Charles Hutton (who is said to have shown Bewick the technique of wood engraving) as well as a modern street map marked with the twenty-eight principal sites of interest.

The leaflet also has information about Bewick’s birthplace at Cherryburn and about Ovingham where he went to school.

The leaflets is distributed free of charge to interested members of the public and are available at the Newcastle City Library Reception and at the Newcastle Tourist Information Centre at 132 Grainger Street.

It is hoped that Thomas Bewick in Newcastle will encourage people to explore their city with new eyes, and enable them to find places they have never seen or noticed before – while at the same time learning more about Bewick and his many friends and colleagues.

For more leaflets contact June Holmes, The Bewick Society, Hancock Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4PT
email: nhsn@ncl.ac.uk

Thomas Bewick 1753–1828 Tyneside Artist and Engraver by Douglas Glendinning, Anna Flowers & Anthony Flowers (2003)

Tyne Bridge Publishing (link)
Tyne Bridge Publishing at Newcastle City Libraries produced a well illustrated paperback book Thomas Bewick 1753-1828 Tyneside Artist and Engraver by Douglas Glendinning, Anna Flowers & Anthony Flowers (2003), with many colour pictures from the Newcastle City Library and Natural History Society of Northumbria archives.

Copies are still available from Newcastle Libraries £6.99 or direct from Tyne Bridge Publishing (0191 2774174). email: anna.flowers@newcastle.gov.uk

Forthcoming in late 2008

Thomas Bewick: The Blocks Revisited & Rediscovered

In 1942 the Ward Collection of Bewick Blocks was sold at auction to an American purchaser and they were sent to Chicago where they were eventually divided between three main collections. William Hesterberg, who operates his own small press and publishing company in Evanston (north Chicago), will be producing a book to account for what has happened to all these blocks. Mr Hesterberg will be printing it himself. It will be published in a small limited edition by the Oak Knoll Press of New Castle, Delaware, USA in late 2008. Information as to cost is not yet available.

The book will tell the story of the blocks in Chicago and their provenance in known collections since 1942.

For more information contact William Hesterberg at:
bill_hesterberg@sbcglobal.net

To be distributed through Oak Knoll Press.