Art Series - May Gibbs

ART SERIES - May Gibbs

May Gibbs is one of Australia’s best loved classic children’s book writers and artists. May’s deep love of the Australian bush was portrayed in her work, engendering in children her own love of nature.

May demonstrated artistic ability from an early age excelling at botanical drawings. After studying art in London, May worked as an illustrator securing commissions with publishing houses and newspapers. At the onset of World War I, May contributed by creating postcards featuring gumnut characters and Australian animals to be sent by families and in Red Cross parcels to the diggers across the world. These helped establish the foundation of fans.

May found success as an author in 1916 when the first of her books, Gumnut Babies, was published. It was clear May’s bush fantasy world and her beautifully executed watercolour and ink drawings had captured the hearts of Australians and laid the foundation of a new Australian folklore. With the publication of her first full length book Tales of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (1918) May took her place as a beloved Australian children’s author.

In 1924 May Gibbs became Australia’s first female cartoonist with the publication of her popular Bib and Bub cartoon strip which first appeared in the Sunday News on 3 August 1924. It was to become Australia’s longest running comic strip, continuing until late 1967.

When she died May Gibbs bequeathed her work to The Northcott Society and Cerebral Palsy Alliance. Through her foresight, May Gibbs has helped thousands of Australian children living with disability and their families.