Have you ever wondered when you first got a taste for the things you love/obsess about now?
I have a love of illustrated Bibles. I think, for all their dangers like presenting an erroneous picture of Jesus (He wasn't a member of some European hair metal band!) ... they also have a lot of joy for visual people like me.
My favourite illustrated Bible is A Child's Bible : New Testament by Shirley Steen with illustrations by Charles Front.
I got this book thirty years ago in 1980... when I was six. It has been a well read but treasured possession ever since because I have never seen any artwork to rival it... in all that time.
Seriously... I have never seen artwork that comes close. The characterisation is wonderful... backgrounds are vivid in their simplicity... and the typography is still fresh today, imho.
I don't know much about Charles Front other than he did some illustration for Jackanory... did the lettering for The Beattle's Rubber Soul and illustrated the Carbonel series of books. I think I may need to do some further digging... because if anyone deserves a wikipedia page its him, imho.
Anyway... here are some selected pages from my treasure copy to whet you whistle for his artwork:
Map
The Birth of Jesus from pages 14 & 15
The story of Mary & Martha from pages 136 & 137
If anyone knows a way of contacting Charles Front... or where I could get a pristine copy of "A Child's Bible" then please leave a comment.
Tx
4 comments:
Not sure if this helps or not, but there's a list of available used copies here:
http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/used-books/Bible-childs-Bible-New-Testame/0330236903-rare.html
Thanks William!
I stumbled onto this page in search of the illustrated bible I had as a kid -- this is exactly it! Thanks for posting and making my search easier. It seems they did a reprint recently with both volumes under a single cover -- just bought one for my kids. Thanks again.
You are welcome Peter... thanks for commenting.
Tx
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