Jonny Hannah – Elizabeth David: Of Pageants and Picnics – Signed Limited-Edition Screenprint 28/50 – Cakes & Ale Press – 2005

Description

A substantial and important original screenprint by Jonny Hannah, entitled Elizabeth David: Of Pageants and Picnics, dating from 2005 and based on Hannah’s cover artwork for the Penguin edition of Elizabeth David’s writing.

The work measures 56.2 × 75.8 cm and was issued in a limited edition of only 50 impressions. This example is number 28/50, signed and dated 2005 by Jonny Hannah in pencil, with the Cakes & Ale Press imprint clearly visible beneath the image.

The composition is immediately recognisable as book-cover artwork. At its centre is a bold red cartouche carrying the wording:

ELIZABETH DAVID
OF PAGEANTS & PICNICS

Around it Hannah builds a dense field of culinary and domestic imagery in pale blue, yellow, red and cream, incorporating spoons, bowls, plates, utensils, food-related motifs and fragments of decorative lettering.

The design has the visual richness of a printed dust-jacket or paperback cover, but enlarged and given greater physical presence as an artist’s screenprint.

Penguin Cover Artwork

The significance of the work lies in its direct relationship to Penguin’s edition of Elizabeth David’s work.

Hannah’s image was created as the cover artwork for that publication, giving the screenprint a particularly strong crossover between original printmaking, illustration, publishing history and twentieth-century food writing.

This is therefore not simply a print inspired by Elizabeth David. It is an artist’s edition derived from a published commercial commission, making it especially relevant to collectors of Hannah, Penguin design, modern illustration and culinary literature.

The screenprint allows Hannah’s original graphic concept to be appreciated independently of the book format. Enlarged to 56.2 × 75.8 cm, the familiar cover design becomes a richly textured autonomous work, with the hand-drawn typography and layered imagery taking on much greater visual impact.

Elizabeth David

Elizabeth David (1913–1992) was one of the defining British food writers of the twentieth century.

Her writing transformed post-war attitudes towards food by introducing British readers to the cooking of France, Italy and the Mediterranean. Books such as A Book of Mediterranean Food, French Country Cooking and Italian Food combined recipes with travel, history, observation and literary style.

Hannah’s treatment is particularly well suited to David’s work. Rather than using portraiture, he builds the image from the material culture of food and cooking — utensils, tableware, ingredients, decorative lettering and domestic objects.

The result evokes not only food itself, but the broader world of reading, travel, taste and visual culture that surrounds David’s writing.

Typography and Composition

Typography is central to the work.

The red title cartouche acts as the focal point, while the surrounding field is alive with Hannah’s characteristic hand-drawn line and dense patterning.

The palette of powder blue, warm yellow, red and cream gives the design a strong mid-century flavour, highly appropriate to a Penguin publication and to David’s place within twentieth-century British publishing.

The composition has the double identity of book cover and fine-art print, and that dual purpose is what gives it particular interest.

Screenprint Technique

This is an original colour screenprint, not a later photographic or digital reproduction.

The image has been built through successive printed layers, preserving the irregularity and handmade quality of Hannah’s drawn imagery and lettering.

Small variations in ink density, registration and surface are characteristic of the screenprinting process and form part of the work’s physical character.

Edition

This example is:

28/50

from a limited edition of only 50 impressions.

The combination of:

• original Penguin cover artwork;
• large format;
• small edition;
• pencil signature and date;
• 2005 production date;
• and Elizabeth David subject matter

makes this a particularly strong Hannah print.

Condition

Very good condition overall.

The printed image remains bright and attractive, with strong colour and excellent visual impact.

There is slight creasing to one corner within the margin, away from the main printed image. This is minor but noted for accuracy.

Otherwise there is only light natural handling and paper irregularity consistent with the age and handmade nature of the work.

The pencil signature, 2005 date and edition number 28/50 remain clear and legible.

Please study the photographs carefully as they form an integral part of the description.

Artist: Jonny Hannah
Title: Elizabeth David: Of Pageants and Picnics
Date: 2005
Medium: Original colour screenprint
Original use: Cover artwork for the Penguin edition of Elizabeth David’s work
Edition: 28/50
Edition size: 50
Signed: Yes, in pencil
Dated: 2005 in pencil
Size: 56.2 × 75.8 cm
Imprint: Cakes & Ale Press
Condition: Very good; slight creasing to one corner in the margin
Format: Original limited-edition artist’s screenprint
Modern reproduction: No

Authenticity

This work has been handled, inspected and catalogued in-house at Hornseys before being offered for sale.

The pencil signature, date, edition number 28/50 and Cakes & Ale Press imprint are clearly visible.

It is an original signed and numbered Jonny Hannah screenprint based on his published Penguin cover artwork, not a later reproduction.

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At Hornseys, we are committed to offering original paintings, signed prints, illustrated books and related works by Jonny Hannah that meet high standards of authenticity, condition and visual quality. Our collection has been assembled carefully over more than fifteen years and reflects our long-standing appreciation of Hannah’s distinctive contribution to contemporary British art, illustration and printmaking.

Every item is individually examined, researched and catalogued before being offered for sale.

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Explore our evolving collection of Jonny Hannah original paintings, signed and limited-edition prints, illustrated books and related artworks. His distinctive imagery, hand lettering and narrative style draw upon music, maritime culture, vintage advertising, folk art, popular entertainment and the visual character of British towns and seaside communities.

Whether you are an established collector, an admirer of contemporary British illustration or searching for an unusual and memorable gift, our collection offers the opportunity to acquire carefully selected examples of Jonny Hannah’s work.

Established in 1976 and based in Ripon, North Yorkshire, Hornseys is an independent gallery and bookseller specialising in original art, prints, design, collectable books and historic material. Every item is handled, inspected and catalogued in-house at our Ripon gallery.