Barbara C. Freeman

Enid used many illustrators in her books. Discuss them here.
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pete9012S
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Barbara C. Freeman

Post by pete9012S »

Barbara Constance Freeman (29 November 1906 – 1999) was an English writer and illustrator of books for children and young adults.
Biography

Barbara Constance Freeman was born on 29 November 1906 in Ealing, near London. She attended the Tiffin Girls' School in Kingston upon Thames in Surrey and later studied at the Kingston School of Art.[1]

She illustrated many books by other writers, including The Treasure Hunters by Enid Blyton, and many collections of fairy tales, both traditional tales by Grimm and Andersen and modern stories. Some of her earliest illustrations are found in The Cuckoo Book (1942), a book of fairy tales by Edith Mary Bell. She also contributed to comics, including Playhour, and to annuals, such as, Blackie's Children's Annual 1934.[2]

By the 1960s she had begun writing and illustrating her own books for children and young adults. Some have a touch of fantasy: in Two-Thumb Thomas the eponymous hero is raised by school cats; in Broom-Adelaide, a fox rides a flying broomstick. Some, including Lucinda and The Name on the Glass, are set in the past, while in others, such as A Book by Georgina and The Other Face, the lives of the main characters are interwoven with history.

Her books have not remained in print, but some of her illustrations are still available as posters and art prints.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_C._Freeman" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have the version of The Treasure Hunters that she illustrated:

http://share.pho.to/9H0uT" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

https://www.facebook.com/enid.blytonbad ... 416&type=3" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Barbara signs her name in every single illustration that appears in The Treasure Hunters.

She illustrates some stories in The Fourth Holiday Book too.
These two images show a slight similarity in how she portrayed mature ladies...

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The Treasure Hunters 1950..

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The Fourth Holiday Book 1949


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The 1940 Treasure map...

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The 1950 map...
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

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I've got that hardback edition of The Treasure Hunters too, although my copy is circa 1962. They're lovely illustrations which remind me a bit of Gilbert Dunlop. I really must re-read this book.
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Rob Houghton »

I have both versions of The Treasure Hunters, but must admit I prefer the original illustrations by Joyce Davies (or is it E Wilson)?! :shock:
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Tony Summerfield »

One or two other short stories as well, Pete, but I have a feeling that she also illustrated some reprints that won't show up in the Cave search, but I could be wrong!

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/sear ... ch=Freeman" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by pete9012S »

Yes,thanks Tony for pointing out her other contributions.

I've just bought a book by her from amazon for £4.44 which sounded rather intriguing:

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A Haunting Air Edition: first Hardcover – 1977

Gets a good review on amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haunting-Air-Ba ... bc?ie=UTF8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Julie2owlsdene »

My three copies of The Treasure Hunters are illustrated by Barbara C Freeman. I love her illustrations of The Treasure Hunters.

8)
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Courtenay »

pete9012S wrote: I've just bought a book by her from amazon for £4.44 which sounded rather intriguing:

Image
A Haunting Air Edition: first Hardcover – 1977

Gets a good review on amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haunting-Air-Ba ... bc?ie=UTF8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Ooh, sounds spooky, Pete! :o

Both the copy of The Treasure Hunters I grew up with and the one I now have are illustrated by Barbara Freeman. I've seen the original illustrations in the Cave and they're every bit as good in their own way, I would say, but of course I have a soft spot for the ones I've always known.

I'm glad that, unlike some "later" Blyton illustrators, Freeman makes no noticeable attempt to modernise the clothing styles or other elements - the only really obvious difference in the children's clothing is that Freeman's John doesn't wear a tie! :wink: There's a lovely timeless feeling and a real sense of fun and adventure in both sets of illustrations.

I'm quite taken with this original illustration (for which we don't have a Freeman equivalent) of Susan doing her "I've got the Treasure!" act (and Mr Potts looking utterly dismayed!):

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But this one from Freeman will always be my favourite illustration of the Treasure itself, with the magnificent lucky cup in the middle, from the final chapter:

Image
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Anita Bensoussane »

I like the ornate cup with the jewels and elephants too, Courtenay.

It's interesting that Barbara Freeman wrote several books of her own. She was clearly very talented.
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by pete9012S »

Here's a bit more info about her:

http://illustrationartgallery.blogspot. ... eeman.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"Barbara C. Freeman is a gentle writer, with a particular appeal to girls. She makes no great demands of her readers, but does provide good entertainment. Anyone wanting easy, fluent, romantic stories would do well to consider her work." So wrote Felicity Trottman in Twentieth-Century Children's Writers.

Freeman was both a writer and artist, starting out primarily as an illustrator. "I write, I suppose, chiefly because I enjoy writing," she later said. "I like living in two worlds: the one I was born into and the other (which becomes entirely real) which I write about. I'm deeply interested in the way ordinary people lived in the past and the way in which the past thrusts into the present. I believe that most writers find that their characters develop lives of their own and sometimes take charge of both conversations and plots. This, for me, is pure delight, and I allow my people all the freedom that is possible.

"At art school I was trained to observe details of every kind, and it is a habit that one never grows out of. Details, especially those of the past, fascinate me."

Barbara Constance Freeman was born in Ealing, Middlesex, on 29 November 1906, the daughter of writer and secondhand bookseller William Freeman and his wife Lucy Constance Freeman (nee Rimmington), who were married in 1905. She studied at the Tiffin Girls' School, Kingston-upon-Thames and at Kingston School of Art.

Freeman began working as a painter with Green & Abbott, a West End wallpaper studio (1926-27). From there she turned freelance, often working on annuals. She specialised as an artist of fairy tales, although in a realistic style with fantastic elements. She was often called upon to illustrate classic stories the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen. She also produced illustrations for The Children's Encyclopedia.

As television grew and the number of annuals and entertainments for children disappeared in the 1950s, Freeman turned to writing her own stories, beginning in 1956. He first books, Timi and Two-Thumb Thomas, were published in 1961.

Her work was exhibited at the Heritage Centre, Kingston-upon-Thames Museum, in 1989.

Since her early childhood, she lived in a mid-Victorian house with a large garden, from which she drew much of her inspiration. She died in May 1999.

PUBLICATIONS

Timi. London, Faber, 1961; New York, Grosset and Dunlap, 1970.
Two-Thumb Thomas. London, Faber, 1961.
A Book by Georgina. London, Faber, 1962; New York, Norton, 1968.
Broom-Adelaide. London, Faber, 1963; Boston, Little Brown, 1965.
The Name on the Glass. London, Faber, 1964; New York, Norton, 1966.
Lucinda. London, Faber, 1965; New York, Norton, 1967.
Tobias. London, Faber, 1967.
The Forgotten Theatre. London, Faber, 1967.
The Other Face. London, Macmillan, 1975; New York, Dutton, 1976.
A Haunting Air. London, Macmillan, 1976; New York, Dutton, 1977.
A Pocket of Silence. London, Macmillan, 1977; New York, Dutton, 1978.
The Summer Travellers. London, Macmillan, 1978.
Snow in the Maze. London, Macmillan, 1979.
Clemency in the Moonlight. London, Macmillan, 1981.
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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Rob Houghton »

It's interesting that most people go for the Barbara C. Freeman illustrations, mainly because these were the first version of the illustrations they came across when they were younger, and yet they aren't the original illustrations. :wink:

This is why I prefer the Rene Cloke illustrations in Faraway Tree rather than the Dorothy Wheeler ones, and the Derek Lucas illustrations for Secret Seven, and the annual depictions of the Famous Five.

For The Treasure Hunters I actually prefer the originals, as I never knew either version until about 15 years ago, and I think they have much more charm than the Barbara Freeman ones. :-)
'Oh voice of Spring of Youth
hearts mad delight,
Sing on, sing on, and when the sun is gone
I'll warm me with your echoes
through the night.'

(E. Blyton, Sunday Times, 1951)



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Re: Barbara C. Freeman

Post by Moonraker »

Tony Summerfield wrote:I have a feeling that she also illustrated some reprints that won't show up in the Cave search, but I could be wrong!
Maybe The Cave should be renamed The Catacombs....
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