Special Collections
This collection showcases the golden period of journals and magazines from the 19th and early 20th century for Art, Illustration, Design and Literature. The Rare Journal collection is arranged alphabetically by title. All titles and details of titles can be found on Primo.
Rare Journals Highlights
The Yellow Book
The Yellow Book was a fashionable magazine which ran from 1894–97, taking its name and appearance in imitation of French novels which was a disreputable association in Victorian England.
The founding principles were that literature and art should be treated independently and given equal status, and Aubrey Beardsley, illustrator of Wilde’s Salomé was appointed art editor.
The Strand Magazine
The Strand was a monthly magazine that first appeared in January 1891 and was composed of short fiction and general interest articles. It is most known for the Sherlock Holmes short stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. These stories were first published in The Strand with illustrations by Sidney Paget. He was not the only famous author to contribute - others included H.G Wells, Agatha Christie, Rudyard Kipling, E. Nesbit and Dorothy L. Sayers, among many others
The magazine's iconic cover was an illustration looking eastwards down London's Strand towards St Mary-le-Strand, with the title suspended on telegraph wires, and was the work of Victorian artist and designer George Charles Haité.
Lilliput Magazine
Founded in 1937 by Stefan Lorant, Lilliput was a British monthly small format magazine of short stories, photographs, the arts and humour. Until 1949, the covers were illustrated by Walter Trier, a Czech-German illustrator.
The Studio
The Studio which was started in 1893 was a very influential art journal. Though British in origin, it was unusual that it was international in coverage. It covered all aspects of the decorative, fine and applied arts. Each issue of The Studio contained a round-up of the latest art news, reports on recent exhibitions, and book reviews of the day. The magazine was also responsible for promoting trends and developments in contemporary art. It was, for example, significant in promoting the Arts and Crafts movement in Britain. The Magazine helped establish the reputations of many artists such as Whistler, Aubrey Beardsley and the Glasgow School of Art.
Punch Magazine
Founded in June 1841, Satirical magazine combining humour with political commentary attributed with coining the current usage of the word cartoon.