Family exhibition opens at Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum.. (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Family exhibition opens at Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum..

AN exhibition for all the family by E H Shepard, the artist who illustrated the four Winnie-the-Pooh stories of A A Milne, has opened recently at Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum and runs until May 12.

This show will surprise many visitors who only know Shepard's work through his illustrations of children's books. He was a versatile artist who drew events as they happened to him during both World Wars, produced covers and political cartoons for Punch magazine and illustrated biographies of Pepys, Boswell and Charles Lamb. As well as the Pooh books he illustrated Kenneth Graham's "The Wind in the Willows."

Born in 1879, E H Shepard was encouraged to draw from an early age by his artist parents and some drawings on display exhibit his ability to capture movement and detail as a precocious seven-year-old.

Also included are family portraits, illustrated letters sent to his wife from the western front and wartime memorabilia.

Drawn from extensive collections of the University of Surrey in Guildford and the Victoria and Albert Museum, this exhibition covers the work of the artist from the age of seven to 90.

Opening times: Monday to Saturday 10am-5.20pm, Sundays 2-4pm (first Thursday of each month open from 11am).

Closed bank holidays, admission free.