Artist Analysis: Edward Gorey

Edward Gorey (February 22, 1925 – April 15, 2000) was an American writer and artist. He was most known for his illustrated books such as The Doubtful Guest (1957) and The Gashlycrumb Tinies (1963). His drawings often showed unsettling narrative scenes in Victorian and Edwardian settings.

This piece of work is an illustration from The Gashlycrumb Tinies. Published in 1963, The Gashlycrumb Tinies is an abecedarian book. The book tells a tale of the deaths of 26 children, who each represent a letter of the alphabet. He tells their deaths in rhyming dactylic couplets. It has been described as a "sarcastic rebellion against a view of childhood that is sunny, idyllic, and instructive". This book really is so peculiar. I have never come across anything like it before.

The illustration that I have chosen to analyse is the last illustration in the book. I thought that this illustration was the most haunting as the text reads ‘’Z is for Zillah who drank too much gin’’. We wouldn’t associate children with alcohol as they are far too young to consume it, let alone dying from drinking too much of it.

The illustration shows two girls sitting at a table. On the table there is a big bottle, which, evidently must be a bottle of gin. The girl on the right is sitting upright, with a glass in her hand staring at the girl opposite her. The young girl on the left, which I presume is Zillah, has sunk into her chair and her body is a skeleton.

I am highly fond of the way the artist has used the formal elements. The whole illustration has been created by using line which has added tone, texture and pattern to the illustration. The tone is darker in some areas which create shadow and the line creates an excellent wooden texture on the walls, floor, table and chairs. There is pattern being used towards the top of the wall in the background; there is a strip of wallpaper with a swirly pattern on it stretching from the left to the right. The walls and floor are also using pattern and repetition with the use of wood.

As the stories are quite dark and dramatic, I think that the black and white colours used are very strong and have great contrast. The book is very humorous, although may be quite worrying for parents. Nevertheless it is a unique take on the usual children’s alphabet books and it includes some very distinguished illustrations.

Gorey’s use of pen and ink drawings, formal elements and dark theme will inspire me to create a successful response to his work.