Garth Williams illustrations to lead Swann auction

Garth Williams illustrations from EB White's Stuart Little and Charlotte's Web are to see some of the highest bids in Swann Galleries' 2015 Ilustration Art auction.

Garth Williams Stuart Little
Garth Williams' drawings are some of the most beloved of all children's illustrations



The drawings will sell on January 22 amid fresh to the market works from some of the top illustrators, cartoonists and children's book creators.

The top lot will be an original endpaper drawing for 1945 book Stuart Little in pen and ink with pencil and wash, which is expected to sell for $15,000-20,000. It is joined by the iconic spider web used as the endpapers for 1952's Charlotte's Web, which is valued at $10,000-15,000.

In 2010, a group of drawings for Charlotte's Web, including the original cover design, sold for a world record $780,245 at Heritage Auctions.

Also starring are a magnificent group of illustrations from Russian artist Gennady Spirin, who is noted for his unique style in illustrating classic works such as Shakespeare, Tolstoy and Chekhov.

The sale features his superb illustration for The Frog Princess ($10,000-15,000), and two drawings created for a retelling of Russian folk tale The Sea King's Daughter, valued at $10,000-15,000 and $8,000-12,000.

Arthur Rackham works will also feature with his allegorical Frost (1922) estimated at $6,000-9,000, while The Woman Who Knew Magic, an unused illustration from Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen in Fairy Tales, holds an $10,000-15,000 estimate.

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