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Samuel Palmer: The Sketchbook of 1824

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This facsimile of Samuel Palmer's only surviving sketchbook (all others were sadly destroyed by his son after the artist's death) is a thing of beauty indeed. Palmer was all of 19 when he filled its pages with rough sketches, fine drawings, and the occasional poem. Any aspiring artist will recognize the struggle to hone & focus an obvious talent still in need of development. But even the non-artist will enjoy lingering over each page, watching as Palmer imitates his influences & begins to discover his own style.

First among those influences, of course, is his mentor, William Blake. Close relations of the great artist's sinuous, larger-than-life figures emerge on several pages here. But Palmer's own pastoral but mystic tone is already taking shape: more modest in scale, with a luminous & unearthly stillness quite unlike Blake's ferocious & immense figures astride the cosmos. There's also a close attention to & clear love for the details of Nature, also foreign to Blake except as potent symbol.

These pages are the first budding leaves of Palmer's visionary art. There was much ahead for this gifted young man, both a fully-developed artistic talent & personal disappointment; but this is where it all starts. A reminder to make the most of your gifts, and to pursue your own vision -- highly recommended!