THE SEAL WOMAN

First and only printing. Signed by the author and artist. Bound by Stephen Conway in black cloth with a printed paper title label to the upper board. Heavy paper. 55 x 58 cm. Kathleen Raine's poem is printed on a single page at the beginning, followed by twelve large, full-page black and white illustrations by Petra Freeman. A fine copy, the binding square and tight, the prelims with a few faint marks, the contents otherwise clean and bright throughout and without previous owners' stamps or inscriptions. Accompanied by a matching fine portfolio, also measuring 55 x 58 cm, containing three loose signed prints by Freeman.

Signed by Kathleen Raine and Petra Freeman on the title page. Two of the three loose prints are numbered 2/8, all are signed in pencil to the lower margin. A collection of large-scale, atmospheric, sparse and bold prints produced while Freeman was studying illustration at the Royal College of Art, to accompany Raine's poem 'The Seal-Woman', which was first published in her 1943 collection 'Stone and Flower'. Though an illustration student, the narrative leanings of Freeman's work led her to explore animation while still at university. Her resulting graduation film, 'Felt, Lifted and Weighted', with its stark, amorphous, monochrome imagery painted on glass bears a striking visual resemblance to the present collection. After graduation Freeman undertook an animation residency at the London Museum of the Moving image, an initiative created in collaboration with Channel 4. This resulted in the short animation 'The Mill', a surrealist fairy tale which aired on Channel 4's 'Secret Passions' in 1992. Freeman went on to create two further painted-glass animations, 'Jumping Joan' and 'Tad's Nest', as well as the short film 'Bee Boy'. She has also held solo exhibitions of her paintings. No matter the medium, her work is recognisable for its distinctive use of whimsy and darkness to capture ephemeral aspects of the psyche, the spirit and the natural world. Freeman was brought up in rural Cornwall, an experience that weaves itself throughout her work. Similarly, Raine was particularly struck by an extended childhood stay in the Northumbrian countryside, which she stated left a lasting mark on her poetry and foretold a lifelong love of the natural world. Her poetry typically contemplates spirituality, nature and the inner self, making it a natural companion of Freeman's dream-like art.