A HOUSE OF POMEGRANATES BY OSCAR WILDE, THE DESIGN & DECORATION BY C. RICKETTS AND CH. SHANNON

 

Charles de Sousy Ricketts RA (2 October 1866 – 7 October 1931) was a British artist, illustrator, author and printer, known for his work as a book designer and typographer and for his costume and scenery designs for plays and operas.

Ricketts was born in Geneva to an English father and a French mother and brought up mainly in France. In 1882 he began studying wood engraving in London, where he met a fellow student, Charles Shannon, who became his lifelong companion and artistic collaborator. Ricketts first made his mark in book production, first as an illustrator, and then as the founder and driving force of the Vale Press (1896–1904), one of the leading private presses of the day, for which he designed the type and illustrations. A disastrous fire at the printers led to the closure of the press, and Ricketts turned increasingly to painting and sculpture over the following two decades. 

Charles Haslewood Shannon RA (26 April 1863 – 18 March 1937) was an English artist best known for his portraits. These appear in several major European collections, including London's National Portrait Gallery. Several authorities spell his middle name Hazelwood. The National Portrait Gallery prefers the spelling used here.  Shannon was born in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, son of the Rev. Frederick William Shannon, Rector of Quarrington, and Catherine Emma Manthorp, daughter of a surgeon, Daniel Levett Manthorp. He was educated at St John's School, Leatherhead where he played cricket in the first XI. He then attended the City and Guilds of London Art School (then known as South London School of Technical Art, formerly Lambeth School of Art) and was later much influenced by his lifetime partner, Charles Rickett^] and by the example of the great Venetians. His early work has a heavy, low tone, which he later abandoned for clearer, more transparent colours. He achieved success with his portraits and his Giorgionesque figure compositions, which are marked by a classic sense of style, and with his etchings and lithographic designs.  (Wikipedia)

 

Charles Haslewood Shannon and Charles de Sousy Ricketts