Original Painting A Round Dozen Cover

This Tasha Tudor original watercolor was published as the front cover of Louisa May Alcott’s A Round Dozen, a collection of 12 short stories that were sourced from original publications between 1884-89. Editor Anne Thaxter Eaton (1881-1971), a children’s librarian and children’s book reviewer for the New York Times, selected her favorite stories for publication with Tasha Tudor’s illustrations in A Round Dozen in 1963. Tasha illustrated Alcott’s better-known Little Women six years later, in 1969.

The painting is an unusually large size for a Tasha Tudor work, allowing satisfying detail in each of the twelve vignettes. The small scenes are arranged like the numbers on a clock face, each measuring about 2″ × 3″. Each miniature scene is a world of its own, corresponding to the twelve stories selected for inclusion in the book. 

Eaton selected stories from the previously published books From Lulu’s Library, Vol I and III, Spinning Wheel Stories, and Aunt Jo’s Scrap Bag. She remarks in the introduction, “[The] qualities, - loyalty, determination, unselfishness - are all reflected in greater or less degree in these twelve stories, which show as well the delightful appreciation of character and personality that makes the people in Little Women so timelessly alive.”

Stories are:

A Hole in the Wall

Baa! Baa!

The Silver Party

The Brownie and the Princess

Tabby’s Tablecloth

Lunch

How They Camped Out

The Hare and the Tortoise

Jersey, or The Girls’ Ghost

The Cooking Class

Music and Macaroni

The Banner of Beaumanior

A Hole in the Wall corresponds to the scene in the 1 o’clock position, Baa! Baa! corresponds to the 2 o’clock position, and so on. In some cases, the vignettes clearly correspond with illustrations from the book interior; in others, they differ. It’s a fun comparison for all art lovers who own a copy of this out-of-print title. It should be noted that this is the only color illustration done for the book. All interior illustrations were black and white. 

As is common with Tasha’s work, the finely wrought detail of the original surpasses its reproduction. The details are a visual feast, especially once the floral border catches your attention. The ‘clock face’ is topped by brass pieces typical of pocket watches, completing the nod to a pocket-watch motif, a clever way of grouping illustrations of times gone by.

As many of you know, Tasha routinely sketched her illustrations on tracing paper before delicately transferring the lines to the more expensive watercolor paper. The “preliminary” for the painting is affixed to the back of the frame, keeping the pair together - an unusual opportunity to offer both the preliminary and the finished painting together - thanks to the foresight of the original collector.

If you enjoy studying Tasha’s work, you may be interested in the slight differences between the sketch and the finished painting. Such attention allows a look into Tasha’s refined and artistic sense of balance as she made subtle improvements. Though erased, traces of the book title placement are still visible.

This painting was originally purchased on April 4, 1977, from Edward (Ned) Hills, proprietor of the Dutch Inn Gift Shop in Mill Hall, Pennsylvania. He was hailed as one of the earliest Tasha Tudor fans (1938) and opened a dedicated “Tasha Tudor Room” in his shop in the early 1960s. The shop issued catalogs and held Tasha Tudor events during which she signed many books for fans. This piece has been in the same family since its purchase. 

The painting is in excellent condition. The only drawbacks of note are not markings, fading, or foxing, but folds and creases from long ago.  An uneven ‘bubbling’ of the watercolor paper under the 12 o’clock position may be related to the old folds. Thankfully, only one crease mark interferes with a vignette, The Silver Party.  

The preliminary also displays folds, which may have been done by Tasha to provide guidelines to position the vignettes in a circle. The paper has tanned with age, but is otherwise in acceptable condition. It is protected in a clear Mylar wrap, and affixed to the back of the framed painting.

All told, if you are a collector who loves the interplay of literature and illustration art, this work would be a stunning addition to your collection. Or perhaps you’d like to decorate a children’s bedroom or home library with high-quality artwork to inspire their imaginations. Perhaps growing up with original artwork as fine as Tasha’s may inspire your young ones to become artists themselves.

Exterior frame dimensions: 19.5” x 23.5”

Preliminary mat interior: 13.5” x 15”

Preliminary Mat exterior: 17.5” x 19”