She was unmarried, with no prospect of being so, still in the nursery where she remained well into adulthood - a decided spinster. At 25, Beatrix was by any ordinary measure of the time, a failure. The early 19th century offered her no such options. The Potters were wealthy and moved in elite circles the young Beatrix was teased by John Everett Millais and attended parties frequented by some of the most notable literary and artistic figures of the day, including Oscar Wilde.Ī talented amateur mycologist, a modern day Beatrix Potter might well have gone on to pursue a career in botany or natural sciences. Painfully shy, Beatrix was not a natural socialite, despite the urging of her family who were keen to see her married and settled. It was these early sketches that were to become the seeds of inspiration for her best-loved stories. When Bertram went away to school he remembered to leave her with plenty of friends to entertain her, including gifting her a pair of unusual long-eared bats. The two Potter children also kept a variety of pets in the schoolroom including Peter the rabbit, a canary, a budgerigar and a frog called Punch. The family were passionate about the natural world, taking regular holidays in Scotland and the Lake District where the whole family would go out armed with sketchbooks to capture the world around them. Two of her childhood favourites were Alice in Wonderland (she poured over John Tenniel’s illustrations and even tried her hand at her own) and the nonsense verse of Edward Lear. Beatrix loved to read in particular fairy tales. He made sure the young Beatrix and her younger brother Bertram received private painting tuition alongside their other lessons. Her father was a barrister by profession but was also an excellent amateur photographer. The Lords and Ladies of the last century walked with me long the overgrown paths, and picked the old fashioned flowers among the box and rose hedges of the garden.īorn in 1866, Beatrix Potter spent most of her early life in London. The woods were peopled by the mysterious good folk. Everything was romantic in my imagination.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |