The Arthur Rackham Centenary

KENNETH A. LOHF

Y E\'ER has the work of one artist given so much
pleasure to so many persons." Thus commented one
of the guests at the opening of the Arthur Rackham
Centenary Exhibition on Tuesday, November 28, in the Faculty
Room of Low Library. .More than two hundred Friends of the
Libraries, their guests, members of the faculty, and university
officials gathered that day to honor the centenary of the artist's
birth and to view a selection of the outstanding examples of his
work from the collection of more rhan four hundred drawings,
watercolors, oil paintings, and sketchbooks presented to the Li¬
braries by Mr. and Mrs. Alfred C. Berol since 1956.

One of the highlights of the opening was the presence of Arthur
Rackham's daughter, Mrs. Barbara Edwards, and her husband.
Dr. J. Ffoulkes Edwards, who came from their home in Basing¬
stoke, England, to attend the week's festivities as the guests of the
Friends. All who had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Edwards re¬
marked on her charm and graciousness, and her presence, indeed,
added the personal touch that made our appreciation and admira¬
tion of the original drawings and paintings ever more vivid and
meaningful. At the opening ceremonies .Mr. Berol spoke warmly
of his love of Rackham's work and how he and .Mrs. Berol came
to collect their imposing archive of originals, the largest single
collection in the world. He paid tribute to Miss Sarah Faunce,
Director of Artistic Properties at Columbia, who installed the
Centenary Exhibition. Finally, he presented to President Grayson
Kirk, a copy, in a blue leather slipcase, of the Libraries' publica¬
tion The Centenary of Arthur Rackham's Birth, September ip,
!S6j: An Appreciation of His Genius and a Catalogue of His
Original Sketches, Drawings, and Paintings in the Berol Collec-

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