The Penn Studio School of Art presents an online talk with Marta McDowell on May 2 at 10 am on Beatrix Potter. Beatrix Potter was an artist, author, gardener, landowner, sheep breeder, and conservationist.
Author, educator and lecturer Marta McDowell will explore how Potter developed her love of drawing, painting, and gardening and share how these passions came to be reflected in her beloved, classic children’s tales.Lecture is live and will be recorded, students do not have to be present. The recording will be available to students for 3 months after the live lecture, after 3 months the recording will be deleted.
Please check your email spam/junk folder for your Zoom invite. Our business hours are 10:00 AM through 5:00 PM. All lecture information and email correspondence will be sent during business hours. If students purchase the lecture outside business hours or during the weekend the lecture information will be sent the following business day.
Beatrix Potter is best known as author and illustrator of many beloved children’s books. Less well known is her life as farm owner, gardener, naturalist, watercolorist, and renowned conservationist. Presenter Ellen Duzak will trace her formative artistic years in London and explore her later and happiest years in the Lake District of England. This September 19 program beginning at 1 pm is free and open to the Public. Registration is requestedHERE. The venue is Dexter Hall at the Charlton Public Library, 40 Main Street in Charlton, Massachusetts.
Co-Sponsored by Southbridge Garden Club, Charlton Garden Club, and Charlton Public Library.
Author and artist Beatrix Potter’s universe of characters have delighted readers for 120 years, since the first publication of The Tale of Peter Rabbit. She combined first-hand scientific observation with an imaginative hand-painted world of animals and gardens to become one of the most celebrated children’s authors.
In 1905 with the proceeds of her first ‘little books’, Potter bought Hill Top, a working farm in the English Lake District. She escaped from London as often as she could, to stay at her rural retreat, to draw, write, and immerse herself in country life. Beatrix drew inspiration from the house and nearly every room in the house is recognizable from her illustrations.
Many pieces of furniture were copied for her books: the dresser in Hall with its rows of blue and white plates that appeared in The Tale of Samuel Whiskers; the clock on the landing, next to the 18th century window, where Tabitha Twitchit stood; the dressing mirror that featured in The Tale of Tom Kitten.
In the garden, the green gate to the vegetable garden is unchanged from the days of Jemima Puddle-Duck. Today, Hill Top also tells the story of the author, her interests and activities through her collections of furniture, ceramics and artwork. In 1913, Potter married William Heelis and she turned to farming and raising sheep as she settled into married life. As Mrs. Heelis, Beatrix dedicated herself to the preservation of her beloved landscape and the traditional farming culture. Upon her death in 1943, she left a significant bequest of over 4,000 acres of land, 15 farms and cottages to the National Trust.
Alice Sage, Property Curator of Hill Top & Beatrix Potter Gallery, will talk about the author’s life and her devotion to the Lake District, often featured in her artistic works. She will lead us on a visual tour of Potter’s house and garden. She will highlight interior vignettes featured in her books and explain the hidden stories behind Potter’s treasured possessions.
