The Ladybird book of .....

Through adult eyes,
The images of childhood,
Have new resonance.




......
..... went of to Bexhill today to see the Ladybird by Design exhibition at the De la Warr pavilion (one of my favourite buildings).

For those who are not familiar, these were classic little childrens books which aimed to explain the world to children and also provided reading schemes etc. They were at their height in the 60's and 70's and presented a sunny and optimistic view of the world, with everyone safely contained in their gender roles, as perceived at the time.  Obviously this all seems hopelessly outdated nowadays.

Part of their charm were the wonderful illustrations, many of which were works of art in their own right (in my opinion).  This exhibition displayed many of the original art work, which was really quite awe-inspiring.

It also took many of us back to our children - pictures seem to stay in the mind long after words, and even though I love words, it's the illustrations from my childhood reading that really resonate with me.

Mark and I were discussing the books we remembered from childhood - mine were mainly the fairy stories and the wonderful nature books. Mark's were more about how things worked..... gender stereotyping??
 
Anyway, if you're in the area I would recommend it .....

Had a bit of a wander afterwards - I love seaside places in the winter -  I am starting a series of photographs on the theme of "Out of Season", the beginnings of which can be seen here if interested.    I was going to blip one of them, but I wanted to remember the Ladybird exhibition.

Back blip: Samba