Bruce Kennett Studio

BOOK DESIGN  •  EXHIBIT DESIGN  •  PHOTOGRAPHY

The Jewel: A Romance of Fairyland

This is a facsimile of a book written and illustrated by American artist Rockwell Kent.

Kent created The Jewel — his very first book project — as a gift for the Ziegfield Follies dancer Hildegarde Hirsch, with whom he had become romantically involved. Kent made this single holographic volume entirely by hand in his Monhegan Island studio during the summer of 1917, serving as author, calligrapher, illustrator, and binder. The book’s existence was not publicly known until it was put up for auction in 1981!

All materials used in the facsimile were carefully selected for their faithful resemblance to those used by Kent (which were no longer available). The companion booklet contains an essay by Kent expert Eliot Stanley, an introduction by Kent’s widow Sally Kent Gorton, and reproductions (made from my photographs) of artwork created by Kent for Hildegarde Hirsch. The Jewel is a limited edition of 500.

 Recipient of the 1990 Stephen Harvard Prize for Excellence in the Book Arts