The Picture Letters: an "Illustrated Story-Telling" by Beatrix Potter

A distinctive and noteworthy detail of Beatrix Potter’s literary production is her ability to coordinate text and illustrations, both created by herself. This feature is already evident in the picture letters that the author addressed to children and acquaintances, and that will inspire her most famous stories. In my presentation, I focus primarily on Beatrix Potter’s artistic education. Then I dwell the characteristics of her picture letters, making particular reference to the evolution of the Tale of Peter Rabbit from letter to its first commercial edition. Finally, as illustrations are so important in Beatrix Potter’s picture letters as well as in her later books, I focus on their characteristics, emphasizing their innovations compared to other children’s illustrations of her age.Even as a child, Beatrix Potter (1866-1943) shows a strong propensity for the arts. Grown up studying scientific manuals, didactic tales, and picture books for children, and observing with curiosity the world around her, Beatrix Potter in her literary production combines the talent for prose with that for drawing. In fact, in the many tales for which she is remembered, many illustrations are used as a supplement to the written text. The interesting relationship between text and images is particularly evident demonstrated in the series of picture letters – an expression coined by the author herself – letters that Beatrix Potter directs to the Moore children, and from which she will draw inspiration for her most famous characters, such as Peter Rabbit and Benjamin. In my paper, I intend to study this series of letter, dwelling in particular on their format, based on the relationship between narration and pictures. This formal choice is a true artistic statement of the author, a choice that offers multiple interpretations to the story, and stimulates the attention of the children to whom the letters are addressed, realizing what Linda Lear defines as an “illustrated story-telling”. Thanks to their unconventional format, the picture letters represent a focal point in Beatrix Potter’s literary production. Probably, just understanding how much her young readers appreciated these letters, the author reached to the idea of writing and illustrating books for children. These letters are also an artistic experiment and a valid means to mediate between contrasting worlds: the imagination and the natural sciences, fantastic stories for children and the social considerations Beatrix Potter provides in her diary, the iconic impact of the visual set against the structural elements at the base of story-telling (Lear, 2008:132). Nor should it be forgotten that Beatrix Potter used her real life and pets as inspiration for her picture letters. Thus, the letters are capable of reconciling the author’s private experience and her public art. Illustrations in the picture letters deserve particular attention. They are inspired by the pictures drawn by famous artists for children, such as Edward Lear (1812-1888), Walter Crane (1845-1915), and Rudolph Caldecott (1846-1886). At the same time, Beatrix Potter demonstrates an exceptional scientific accuracy and invaluable attention to detail in them. The self-apprenticeship and study Beatrix Potter had pursued at the Natural History Museum in South Kensington strongly influences the animals in the picture letters – even if they are anthropomorphized, as evidenced by the pretty clothes with which they are equipped – and the bucolic nature around them. The scientific attention demonstrated by Potter’s pictures testifies to a well-spread Victorian attention for the natural sciences, displayed especially by high-society women.