Today Google Doodle Sir John Tenniel 200th birth anniversary
Today's Google Doodle is honouring the life and legacy of Sir John Tenniel.
The doodle today honours what would've been his 200th birthday. Born in London on this day in 1820, Tenniel was one of the most highly-regarded Victorian illustrators and painters and is perhaps best remembered for bringing to life the characters of Lewis Carroll’s timeless Alice in Wonderland series.
Here's all you need to know about John Tenniel...
Who was Sir John Tenniel?
Tenniel was born in Bayswater, London, in 1820.
From a young age, his artistic talent was abundantly clear and at 16 he submitted his first work for display - an oil painting, to the Society of British Artists. In 1893, Tenniel was awarded a knighthood for his contribution to Punch and Alice in Wonderland. He died on February 25, 1914, aged 93.
The Google Doodle celebrating Sir John Tenniel sees Alice looking up at the Cheshire Cat in a tree, with Alice's bent arm making up the L in Google. The doodle is a photograph of drawing in Tenniel's style, with a pencil and fountain pen resting to the right of the piece.
By 1850, Tenniel found his calling as a political cartoonist.
Thanks to his near-photographic memory he developed a distinctive style which caught the attention of many.
He first met Charles Dodgson, whose pen name was Lewis Carroll, in 1864, and Tenniel agreed to illustrate Carroll's new book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was the start of a successful, though strained, creative partnership, which continued with Through the Looking Glass in 1871.
The results of this partnership, which continued through to 1872 and included illustrating Through the Looking Glass, is a series of classic and charming character designs such as Alice and the toothy Cheshire Cat.
In 1893, Tenniel received a knighthood for his contribution to the arts, and his drawings continue to inspire children and adults.
After working with Carroll, Tenniel never illustrated again; instead, he returned to Punch magazine to draw more political cartoons.
In a Q&A with Google, Cruickshank said that he first learned of Tenniel, "as a child, reading Alice In Wonderland. The Google Doodle was drawn by Matthew Cruickshank from London. I thought the combination of poetic writing and the hauntingly beautiful and bizarre illustrations were a perfect combination."
And speaking of the Doodle, Cruickshank said: "I wanted to try something hand-drawn since Tenniel himself made astounding drawings that were then given to the engraver, and I wanted to at least pay homage to that initial process.
Cruickshank added: "I hope people are inspired to be as imaginative as Tenniel was with his work. Go fall down a rabbit hole!" "The Cheshire Cat and Alice's conversation were the inspiration. You really can 'go' anywhere you want on the homepage, depending on what you're searching for! I made a very rough basic sketch, a draft, and then the final image. Enjoy and trust the process without thinking of the perfect image straight away."
Today's Google Doodle is honouring the life and legacy of Sir John Tenniel.
The doodle today honours what would've been his 200th birthday. Born in London on this day in 1820, Tenniel was one of the most highly-regarded Victorian illustrators and painters and is perhaps best remembered for bringing to life the characters of Lewis Carroll’s timeless Alice in Wonderland series.
Here's all you need to know about John Tenniel...
Who was Sir John Tenniel?
Tenniel was born in Bayswater, London, in 1820.
From a young age, his artistic talent was abundantly clear and at 16 he submitted his first work for display - an oil painting, to the Society of British Artists. In 1893, Tenniel was awarded a knighthood for his contribution to Punch and Alice in Wonderland. He died on February 25, 1914, aged 93.
The Google Doodle celebrating Sir John Tenniel sees Alice looking up at the Cheshire Cat in a tree, with Alice's bent arm making up the L in Google. The doodle is a photograph of drawing in Tenniel's style, with a pencil and fountain pen resting to the right of the piece.
By 1850, Tenniel found his calling as a political cartoonist.
Thanks to his near-photographic memory he developed a distinctive style which caught the attention of many.
He first met Charles Dodgson, whose pen name was Lewis Carroll, in 1864, and Tenniel agreed to illustrate Carroll's new book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was the start of a successful, though strained, creative partnership, which continued with Through the Looking Glass in 1871.
The results of this partnership, which continued through to 1872 and included illustrating Through the Looking Glass, is a series of classic and charming character designs such as Alice and the toothy Cheshire Cat.
In 1893, Tenniel received a knighthood for his contribution to the arts, and his drawings continue to inspire children and adults.
After working with Carroll, Tenniel never illustrated again; instead, he returned to Punch magazine to draw more political cartoons.
In a Q&A with Google, Cruickshank said that he first learned of Tenniel, "as a child, reading Alice In Wonderland. The Google Doodle was drawn by Matthew Cruickshank from London. I thought the combination of poetic writing and the hauntingly beautiful and bizarre illustrations were a perfect combination."
And speaking of the Doodle, Cruickshank said: "I wanted to try something hand-drawn since Tenniel himself made astounding drawings that were then given to the engraver, and I wanted to at least pay homage to that initial process.
Cruickshank added: "I hope people are inspired to be as imaginative as Tenniel was with his work. Go fall down a rabbit hole!" "The Cheshire Cat and Alice's conversation were the inspiration. You really can 'go' anywhere you want on the homepage, depending on what you're searching for! I made a very rough basic sketch, a draft, and then the final image. Enjoy and trust the process without thinking of the perfect image straight away."
