Lucy Dawson, also known as "Mac," was a preeminent British illustrator in the 1930s and 1940s. She was noted for her paintings and etchings of dogs, both sporting and other types. She worked in pencil, pen, ink and oil, but was mainly known for her work in pastels. She also accepted regular commissions, creating dog postcards published by Valentine & Sons as well as the "Tailwagger" series. Wills' cigarettes also commissioned her work to create a "Puppies" series of 40 cigarette cards during World War II, but restrictions on paper due to the war resulted in a limited production, so these are now extraordinarily rare; in 1990, the company reissued a limited edition of the series, and even these reproductions are becoming highly sought after collectible. Perhaps her most famous commission was by the Royal Family to visit the Royal Lodge in Windsor, to paint their favorite Corgi "Dookie" (later reproduced as a Royal Family Christmas card).
Lucy Dawson also published several books of which Dogs As I See Them may be the best known. Printed on an uncoated stock that simulates that of a sketchbook, the book is filled with her beautiful, endearing drawings of a range of breeds with notes about them in her handwriting as well as a short anecdotal text that provides amusing insight to the personality of her canine model and the experience of drawing him or her.
Our new edition re-creates the original to a T and offers the bonus of a foreword by Ann Patchett, bestselling author, avid dog lover, and Lucy Dawson fan. The case for the book has been modified from a straighforward jacket to a three-piece case with a beautiful cloth spine to enhance its collectibility and appeal to both younger and older readers.
