Walter Inglis Anderson is not only a Mississippi treasure but a national treasure, as well. Quite misunderstood—he was a genius who lived his life as he saw and felt it. He would row out to Horn Island and spend hours—-days—–lost in a world of nature, of wonder. His art included a wide range of media, woodcuts, sculptures, ceramics, book illustrations, paintings, and murals.
For holiday giving —I have done this so often for my family away from Mississippi—-some suggestions:
The Horn Island Logs of Walter Inglis Anderson
This marvelous book not only has drawings and paintings from his time on Horn Island, but also includes incredible logs where he speaks of nature, changing ecology and weaves all of this into his personal thoughts.
“The sun came out for a little while. I saw few birds until Marsh Point…………
Then home and Ocean Springs.
Man must possess the extremes within himself—the means too, but certainly the extremes, which form his limits.”
Illustrations of Epic and Voyage
Walter Anderson read Don Quixote, The Iliad, Paradise Lost and other classics and as he read them over and over again he became so engaged that he created thousands of line drawings of the characters on typing paper—over 2,000 of Don Quixote alone! Thankfully, his wife, Agnes, collected them at the end of the day and saved them. This volume has a wonderful collection of these drawings and even some lovely poetry written by Anderson himself.
The Secret World of Walter Anderson by Hester Bass
And now a marvelous children’s book which introduces young people to the world of Walter Anderson. Paintings are by award-winning artist, illustrator E. B. Lewis. The expository text at the end of the book gives young readers a wonderful overview of his life. Hester Bass will be at Lemuria to sign her book on Sunday, November 15th at 1:00p.m.
Dr. Nancy Verhoek-Miller, director of curriculum and instruction at MSU and editor of the Mississippi Reading Journal, sent me a copy of the most recent volume of this publication. In it was an article written by John Anderson, Walter Anderson’s youngest child. He wrote after going with his father to Horn Island:
“Meeting my father and learning that he was not a lonely hermit or a lunatic had changed me. Looking through his eyes had opened me up to the beauty and drama of living. It had filled my mind with new thoughts and my heart with love.”
So, come by Lemuria soon and browse our collection of Walter Anderson books—and discover his genius, once again.
-Yvonne
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