His grandmother had Told Him (from The Garden of Paradise) - Edmund Dulac

An evocative 1911 watercolour illustration by Edmund Dulac, depicting a grandmother sharing a story before a large, decorative window.

This illustration by Edmund Dulac originates from his work on Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales, specifically the story titled The Garden of Paradise. Published in 1911, the image captures a quiet, domestic moment between a grandmother and her grandchild. The composition is dominated by a large, leaded glass window that functions as a narrative frame. Through the panes, one observes a stylised depiction of the biblical tree of knowledge, complete with a serpent, which provides a thematic backdrop to the grandmother's storytelling.

Dulac employs a muted, earthy palette that reflects the interior setting. The figures are rendered with a focus on silhouette and gesture, while the window itself exhibits a geometric, almost mosaic-like quality. The contrast between the dark, heavy robes of the grandmother and the lighter, more fluid lines of the child creates a sense of intimacy. The floor, tiled in a simple checkerboard pattern, anchors the scene, providing a sense of physical space within the otherwise dreamlike atmosphere of the fairy tale.

As a practitioner of the Golden Age of Illustration, Dulac was known for his ability to synthesise diverse influences, including Persian miniatures and Japanese woodblock prints. In this piece, the influence of stained glass design is evident in the way the window is partitioned. The work demonstrates his technical precision with watercolour, using layered washes to achieve depth without sacrificing the clarity of the line. This print offers a glimpse into the early twentieth-century approach to book illustration, where the artist acted as a visual interpreter of classic literature, creating images that exist in dialogue with the text rather than merely replicating it.