Alice Liddle (Alice in Wonderland)

Alice in Wonderland The Tate

A couple of weeks ago we (Tom, Tabby, Jess myself and my mum) all went to Liverpool for the day, to visit the Alice in Wonderland exhibition at the Tate Liverpool.

Pool of Tears 2 (after Lewis Carroll) - Kiki Smith 2000

Untitled (Falling Alice) - John Wesley 1963

The exhibition was pretty extensive.  It started with a look at the life and interests of the author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) and the influences upon him, of the Pre-Raphaelite artists with whom he associated.

Alice in Wunderland - Sigmar Polke 1971

Alice in Wonderland magic lanter slide No 12 1900-1925

He was extremely interested in photography and there were numerous examples of his work on display.  They even had one of his cameras on display, a huge thing made of wood (and there’s me moaning about my little 3 mega pixel wonder of modern technology)

Dreaming Head - John Armstrong 1938

"And to show you I'm not proud, you may shake hands with me!" - Peter Blake 1970

Also in the first part of the exhibition were some of his photographs of the Liddle sisters, one of which was Alice, who would ultimately become the centre piece of Dodgson’s most famous work.

Alice in Wonderland- George Dunlop Leslie 1879

We missed out on part of the exhibition, the part displaying some of Dodgson’s original writings and early editions of his published works (not that I minded).

Alice and the pack of cards - Adrian Piper 1966

The reminder of the exhibition was about how the Alice in Wonderland story has gone on to capture the imagination of artists over the decades since it was first published and how it has been interpreted over and over again.

Proof sheet for Alice in Wonderland - Charles Dodgson

We all enjoyed the exhibition tremendously and would recommend it to everyone.  I think the exhibition is over now and I’m not sure if it is moving on to another venue.  However, the Tate Liverpool is a great day out. Once you’ve finished there you can wander around the docks or, like we did, pop over the road to Liverpool 1. Here you can find the Blue Coat Gallery and also the Walker Gallery.

"she kept on growing" Alice - Graham Ovenden 1970

These are some of the postcards I picked up at the exhibition. To view larger versions don’t forget to click on the image.

Alice

You may have noticed over recent months I’m on a bit of an Alice in Wonderland thing; its having quite an influence on my assemblage and paper/book sculpture.  Well if you live near Liverpool or are visiting between now and the end of January, you might beat me to an exhibition I want to go to – Alice in Wonderland at the Tate Liverpool.

The Tate Liverpool

“Lewis Carroll’s timeless novels, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, have fascinated children and adults alike since their publication over 150 years ago. Alice in Wonderland at Tate Liverpool is the first exhibition of its kind to explore how Lewis Carroll’s stories have influenced the visual arts, inspiring generations of artists. The exhibition will provide insight into the creation of the novels and the inspiration they have provided for artists through the decades.

The starting point for the exhibition is Carroll’s original manuscript, written in 1864 as a present for ten year old Alice Liddell.  Carroll’s own illustrations ensured that images were central to the story, creating a visual world which took on a life of its own.

Alice in Wonderland will offer visitors a rare opportunity to view Carroll’s own drawings and photographs, alongside Victorian Alice memorabilia and John Tenniel’s preliminary drawings for the first edition of the novel”.

Alice at the Tate Liverpool

To find out more visit the Tate Liverpool web site at www.tate.org.uk/liverpool/

The assemblage as a closed book

I was given a tiny old 1930′s encyclopedia and loved the size of it.  So, I just thought of Alice in Wonderland, where she enters a minature world.

The assemblage opened

When I took the photos for our online shop and Etsy store the sun was out and I managed to get some good photos in the natural light.  Here are some of the extra photos I took but have not been used on Etsy.