Sylvia Plath / Original Juvenile Drawing of a Cherub and a Songbird Signed 1st

Description: "By kisses, by cherubim" ("Fever 103°")Original Juvenile Drawing of a Cherub and a SongbirdBy Sylvia Plath1944Rare original drawing by the eleven-year-old poet featuring a lute-playing cherub singing with a robin sitting on a perch.Very good plus."If you dissect a bird / to diagram the tongue, / you'll cut the chord / articulating song." Plath made visual art throughout her life in a wide variety of mediums: from collage to oils, watercolor to pastels. This early piece, executed in colored pencil and crayon, features two figures often symbolic of poets and poetry - the songbird and the lute - and is emblematic of Plath's art at the time: "She derived most of her early artwork [...] from popular images of fairies and Mother Goose figures that she copied from all forms of publications, at a time when the Victorian aesthetic of flower bouquets and bluebirds, rosy-cheeked children, and cherubic angels dominated commercial and popular art forms" (Connors 10). Plath did not merely dabble in art: it was in many ways central to her creative practice. Before she settled firmly on poetry in college, she seriously considered majoring in art. As Dorothy Moss, curator of the 2017 Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery exhibition of Plath's art, "One Life: Sylvia Plath," observed: "I think that once you know that she drew and painted and sketched constantly as a child, and realize that she went to college to major in art, you'll start seeing how vivid her descriptions are, and how beautifully she put visual images into words." Plath would later write to her mother (who has annotated the verso and dated the piece to "2/4/44"): "I feel I'm developing a kind of primitive style of my own which I am very fond of" (August 28th, 1956). Provenance: Acquired by the previous owner directly from Sylvia's mother Aurelia, who was a personal friend of the buyer. Plath's mother received little money from Plath's increasingly lucrative estate which was controlled by her husband, the poet Ted Hughes, and so she occasionally sold Plath's personal items to supplement her income. A charming and moving original work from one of the defining poets of the 20th century.Read more: Kathleen Connors, "Living Color: The Interactive Art of Sylvia Plath," in Eye Rhymes: Sylvia Plath's Art of the Visual. [Wellesley, MA]: n.p, 1944. 6'' x 4.5''. Original drawing on plain paper, executed in colored pencil and crayon. Initialed by Plath in the lower right corner: "By / SP." Plath's mother Aurelia's penciled annotation "By / Sylvia / 2/4/44" to verso. Mild toning, edgewear. Some faint discoloration here and there. Two pin holes to top corners. Right edge a little rough as if torn from notebook or other book. Else clean and sound. Type Punch Matrix Type Punch Matrix is a rare book firm founded by Rebecca Romney and Brian Cassidy. Between them, they bring over 30 years of experience in the antiquarian book trade. TPM sells a mixture of beloved classics and innovative texts from throughout print history, for collectors and institutions alike. Handpress and modern books, archives and manuscripts, letterpress and ephemera: TPM aims to make collecting both more accessible and more diverse, and believes in the mindful acquisition, preservation, and celebration of the materials of our literary cultures. Proud member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of American (ABAA), the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB), and the International Online Booksellers Association (IOBA). Guarantee We guarantee the accuracy and authenticity of all our listings. "First edition" always means first printing unless otherwise indicated. Items may be returned for any reason within 30 days, through prior arrangement, and in original condition. Maryland residents must add 6% sales tax. Shipping We pride ourselves on our packaging. All books are carefully packed to help ensure safe arrival in condition sent. We use new boxes, with not a single bubble envelope to be found in our shipping room. We ship most packages via USPS media mail and include delivery confirmation at no additional charge. Delivery typically takes 5-10 days, but may be longer, especially during the holidays. Orders are shipped within two business days. Priority USPS, UPS, and Fed-Ex services are available on request; please inquire for a specific quote. We combine shipping on items purchased at the same time. If you check out immediately and are overcharged for shipping during checkout, we will issue you a prompt refund, once actual shipping costs are known. International shipping is available, and we are happy to ship to our international customers. Please contact is BEFORE PURCHASING for an exact quote.This listing was created by Bibliopolis.

Price: 9350 USD

Location: Silver Spring, Maryland

End Time: 2024-11-16T00:08:43.000Z

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