Eric Thake
She’s warm alright
Best known for his linocuts, the graphic artist, designer and
painter Eric Thake believed that his best works were to be found
amongst his Christmas Cards and book plates.
In the 1920s and 30s, Thake had occasionally produced Christmas
cards but after making three to four annually from 1941, his
friends came to expect one each Christmas. Feeling that he
couldn't let them down, Thake continued to produce a linocut print
each year until 1975 when failing eyesight caused him to change to
lithography.
A former pupil at the George Bell School, Thake favoured
uncomplicated designs with light and dark silhouetted shapes and
sensitive line work. Thake had a witty sense of humour and a
love of the outback. She's warm alright first appeared as a
card in 1966 and it is one of a small number of the artist's cards
to have been reworked in several formats. Thake said of the
image "I went with another artist to the Flinders Ranges. Two
chaps were always ahead of us in the car. One of the keys of
this design is the linking of the brim of the hat on the serif of
the 'B'. Having been trained in lettering I am always amused
at the inaccuracies of some country lettering. This one was a
splendid example of 'nineties style with about four layers of gold,
but misplaced."