Cartoonist Quentin Blake's drawings to raise money for coronavirus charities
- 15 May 2020
Gulf Today Report
A collection of 12 drawings by English illustrator and children's writer Quentin Blake, known for illustrating Roald Dahl's books, have gone on an online sale in aid of NHS Charities Together, during the lockdown period.
The famous illustrator, best known for illustrating works by brilliant authors such as Roald Dahl, was inspired by the rainbows he has seen in people’s windows.
Presented in Christie's 'Beyond Worlds: Fine Books & Manuscripts' online auction, which is open for bidding from May 14 to June 4, the collection will be sold to benefit Comic Relief. The series, titled Imaginary Friends, has been created exclusively by Quentin Blake to raise funds for Comic Relief and illustrate the imaginary companions people in isolation may dream of.
Money raised by the drawings will go to charities in the UK and around the world that urgently need support to respond to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
"When I was asked to make some drawings for Comic Relief I naturally thought of all those people isolated by lockdown, and I realised that I voluntarily spend quite a lot of time on my own, with pen in hand, drawing imaginary friends (well, not always friends, actually). What I have produced is a dozen imaginary friends whom I thought might be interesting. I think my own choice would be the girl with the cocktail but I hope there may be imaginary friends here for all kinds of people on their own," Quentin Blake commented.
The sale will also present a further selection of illustrations by him to benefit Greenpeace and Survival International.
Quentin says, ‘It seems like a time when a few straightforward jokes might not come amiss; so that as I know that people have been putting rainbows into their windows to express solidarity, I took the liberty of borrowing them. You will see that I have supposed that they are real and portable, and I hope they are optimistic too.’ The rainbows in his drawings become three-dimensional objects: in one, a man delivers a rainbow on a trolley, and another uses it as a colourful hairstyle. The images express not only the characters’ delight in the rainbow itself, but everyday pleasures: walking on a breezy day, the bond of affection with a dog, the view from a roof, a treat on the table or a cosy place to read.’