If there is one thing that could improve upon the work on Roald Dahl’s children’s books, it is their illustrations. From the Twits – more beard than eyes, to the top hat sporting Willy Wonka, Quentin Blake brought Dahl’s characters to life, as part of a 13-year long partnership, cemented by a handshake in a publisher’s office in 1977.
It is thus, perhaps surprising that Blake’s latest work is a response to Picasso’s Guernica, arguably among his most famous works, deemed to be one of the most compelling anti-war paintings in history by art critics.
Blake’s work is an acrylic on paper, composed in a single day in February, before the full impact of coronavirus was realised. It can now be viewed by robot, a timely response to a timeless piece. His vision of this brave new world is somewhat paradoxical when one considers the artist’s former work, illustrating books from Matilda to The Enormous Crocodile.
“I’m supposed to have a reputation for being cheerful,” Blake said recently, when asked about his new work.
His latest piece is alleged to have been inspired by a recent encounter with a London cabbie. According to Blake, during their journey, the cab driver said: “We live in worrying times” which has been appropriated as the title of the exhibition. Indeed, the driver features in the horizon of the piece, parked concerningly close to the edge of a cliff.
At present, Blake’s show, which had planned for an Easter weekend opening, can be seen online. His almost 200 strong collection, a virtual exploration of very real concerns.
Perhaps the reinvention of one of the country’s best loved children’s illustrators can best be summarised by The Telegraph’s chief art critic, Alastair Sooke, who says: “As we celebrate VE Day, who knew that the illustrator of “The BFG” would follow in the footsteps of Nash and Henry Moore and become a kind of war artist for the coronavirus crisis?”
Much like Covid-19, it seems like nobody saw this coming.
