Confessions of a Bookplate Junkie: Gordon Collett Checklist

Chronological list of Bookplates

By Gordon Collett

A picture of Gordon Collett at work on a trompe l’œil bookcase mural.

I have been interested in pen and ink work since a child., In fact I sold drawings whilst at school, but the pull to science was stronger leading me to study marine zoology, which I did: graduating in 1986,from UCNW Bangor.. However, at college, I decided to be a commercial artist instead. I intended to combine both passions and establish myself as a zoological illustrator. As illustration dropped out of use in the 1990's I turned to new things which have lead to what is currently my main commercial concern, , mural work, particularly trompe l’œil. I have worked across Britain and Europe for both private individuals and commercial clients.

I continued with pen and ink for my own pleasure and have sort of "fallen in" to bookplate designing as a valid way of using this medium. After seeing plates in some of my second hand books, I got tempted to draw one for myself (early 1990's),

Most of my plates are in some way biographical,for example in my own from 1997, It shows that I started as a marine biologist and am an artist, a shell collector and a fencer.The hind's head is my family crest and the faun was a character I used in a lot of my very early illustrations.

1989

1 Kirsten Joanne Hails “Throne of Books” 100 10 x 10cms

1991

2 Emily Jane Brunton “Smoke Rings” 100 10 x 15cms

1993

3 Helen Cannon “Multimedia Library” 100 10 x 10cms

1997

4 Gordon Collett “Life Pursuits” 500 7 x 10cms

2005

5 Prof. Colin Thain “Biographical Heraldry” 250 7 x 10cms

2006

6 Harry Urban Holocaust Memorial Library

“Symbolic Memorial” digital file 7 x 10cms

2008

7 Lucinda Elizabeth Auden “Family Tree” 250 7 x 10cms

8 Eleanora Venus Charles-Collett

“Sleeping Beauty” 250 7 x 10cms

100 10 x 15cms

2009

9 Prof. Karl Lutchmayer “20^th century Piano” 250 7 x 10cms

10 Sir John Donne “Coat of Arms” 250 7 x 10cms

11 Angharad Ellen Kate “Foundation Stones” 250 10 x 10cms

2010

12 Rev. Heather Noel-Smith

“Folly Arch” 250 7 x 10cms

250 10 x 14cms

13 David Griffiths “Druid Token” 1250 7 x 7cms

14 Kerry K. Barker “A Bathtime Read” 250 7 x 10cms

15 Monty Charles-Collett “Dinosaur” 250 7 x 10cms

100 10 x 14cms

16 Alan Butt Philip “Harpsichord” 250 7 x 10cms

100 10 x 14cms

17 Jessica Priestley “New Zealander, Histories” 250 7 x 10cms

100 10 x 14cms

18 John Swarbrick “Psalm 121, 'I will lift up

mine eyes unto the hills'” 250 7 x 12cms

19 Andrew Peake “Peeking kangaroo armorial'” 500 8.5 x 12cms

2011

20 Lucy Claire “Caius blades” 250 7 x 10cms

21 William L. Coleman “Listening to Sibelius” 500 7 x 10cms

22 Ovidiu Sandor “Maps of life” 250 7 x 10cms

23 B'Nai Jeshurun Synagogue

“Misiphre” digital file 14 x 21cms

24 The Library of University College, Oxford

“Welcome In” digital file 7 .5 x 11cms

2012

25 ExL PGBM “Family Colours” 250 9 x 9cms

250 7 x 7cms

26 Søren Iversen “Places He Has Lived” 250 7 x 10cms

27 Per Harkjær “After His Father” 250 7 x 10cms

28 Pucci Dell'Anno “Phonograph” 250 10 x 10cms

29 Jack Carlson “Labrador Crest” 250 10 x 10cms

30 S. D. Ozokur “Reading by the Bosporus” 250 7 x 10cms

31 ExL GAC “Grisaille Arms” digital file 7 x 7cms

32 Yusuf Ìhsan Özokur “Galleon Explorer” 250 10 x 10 cms

33 John Herbert Carlson “Meteorology and Finance” 250 10 x 10 cms

34 Susanne Carlson “Labrador Retrievers” 250 10 x 10 cms

35 Ari Bergmann “Truth Shall Rise from the Earth” 250 7x 10 cms

36 Isabel Woodman “Phoenix and DNA Orobus” 250 9 x 10.5 cms

2013

37 P. O’Mórdha “Irish Colours” [letterpressed] 250 7 x 10 cms
This plate was produced with a space for future dedications.
It has been Letterpress printed, giving it a wonderful embossed surface, The gold is a metallic ink (but not a shiny foil).