Before Winnie-the-Pooh reached readers in 1926, E H Shepard was still working him out in pencil.
Two previously unseen preliminary sketches by Shepard have been shared for the first time by his family to mark the centenary of one of the most loved books in children’s literature. Abandoned at the earliest stage of the book’s creation, the drawings show part of Shepard’s working process as he brought A A Milne’s character to life.
The sketches depict passages familiar to readers, but ones that were not illustrated in the original published book.
One pencil drawing is captioned: “Climbing very cautiously up the stream”. It shows Pooh with Christopher Robin, Piglet and Owl. The sketch was intended for Chapter VIII, in which Christopher Robin leads an “expotition” to the north pole.
In that passage, Milne wrote: “‘We are all going on an Expedition,’ said Christopher Robin, as he got up and brushed himself. ‘Thank you, Pooh.’
“‘Going on an Expotition?’ said Pooh eagerly. ‘I don’t think I’ve ever been on one of those. Where are we going to on this Expotition?’
“‘Expedition, silly old Bear. It’s got an ‘x’ in it.’
“‘Oh!’ said Pooh. ‘I know.’ But he didn’t really.”
Another sketch that did not make the final book is described as a delicate study for Chapter III, in which Pooh and Piglet go hunting and nearly catch a Woozle.
The drawings will go on show at Peter Harrington Rare Books in Dover Street, central London, as part of an exhibition opening on 17 April.
Philip W Errington, a senior specialist at Peter Harrington, described the drawings as “very special”.
He said: “[In] these preliminary sketches, Shepard’s putting these first thoughts on paper and there’s an absolute, vibrant creativity going on there.
“The skill that he’s got in rendering movement is really quite exceptional. The pencil marks across that page are really beautifully done. You’ve got the rapid creativity plus Shepard’s hallmark movement. These pieces really do leap off the page.”
Errington said it was “extraordinarily rare” to come across preliminary Pooh drawings from such an early point in the creative process.
He added: “It is extraordinarily rare to encounter preliminary drawings of Winnie-the-Pooh that capture what might be called the first moment of inspiration, the instant where Shepard is thinking through movement, character and narrative in pencil alone.”
Speaking about “Climbing very cautiously up the stream”, Errington said the sketch also revealed how Shepard was still adjusting the scene on the page.
“You can see Christopher Robin at the front. [Pooh] is really very distinct and Piglet is beautifully done, but he’s got a little arrow at the bottom where he’s put ‘closer’. Perhaps he was having a bit of a problem with how those characters appear on the page. You’ve also got Kanga and Eeyore.”
Errington was an adviser to a 2017 Shepard exhibition staged by the Victoria and Albert Museum. The artist had bequeathed most of his preliminary drawings to the museum in 1969.
Errington said Shepard’s work fell into two groups.
“There are two types of drawing, the preliminary drawings, usually done in pencil, where he starts to create and play with the image and work out what is going to happen, and the finished drawings,” he said.
