Arcadia
San Francisco: Arion Press, 2001. Four color watercolor reproductions by William Matthews. Limited edition. Publisher's green cloth with paper title label, housed in matching publisher's slipcase. 114 pp. 11.25" x 14.25" Fine, housed in near fine slipcase with 2" spot of faint soiling front board, tiny tide mark rear board. Item #242046
LORD BYRON, JUST OFF STAGE
With Lord Byron hovering just over the shoulder of every scene, Tom Stoppard's Arcadia alternates between the nineteenth century and present day (1993) as the modern intellectual community tries to unravel a 1809 murder in the English country home. Following a mathematically bright 13-year-old and her tutor, a hermit researcher, and a man determined to discover whether Byron is a murderer, Stoppard's Tony-nominated play offers a blend of the playwright's niche interests, in this case landscape gardening and chaos theory, and his tender understanding of human relationships.
In this Arion Press limited edition, William Matthew's four watercolors open, puzzle-like, with the theatricality of Humphry Repton's garden books, tracing the evolution of Sidley Park from 1730 to 1993. The acclaimed Western watercolor artist's soft touch develops Stoppard's set into an essential character, as the illustrations fold out from the front and rear boards so readers can view them while reading Stoppard's witty exploration of historiography.
Limited to 400 numbered copies, of which this is 182, signed by the playwright and the artist.
Price: $3,000.00