What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter With 7 Bonus Tips for Artists
By Thea Fiore-Bloom Ph.D.
Interested in discovering eight surprising things you don’t know about the artist (born Helen Beatrix Potter) that can help make your art life blossom in the process?
Wizard! Off we go.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 1.
Potter Was a Mycologist
Potter never had children. She was always working on art or science, or both. Not only was Potter a scientific illustrator, but she was also a mycologist (mushroom scientist)obsessed with mushroom spore germination.
Ever look closely at the mushrooms in Beatrix Potter’s stories?
They’re not only beautiful, but they’re also scientifically correct.
For example, when Potter’s toads have a tea party ( “Toad’s Tea Party”, 1902) they’re not seated at a cartoonish mushroom table.
Oh, no. Potter’s toads have their tansy cake on a meticulously rendered toadstool mushroom table. And each scallop-shaped toad chair? It’s made of a cluster bracket fungus called Polyporus squamosus aka Dryad’s Saddle.
Beatrix’s 1st Bonus Tip For Artists and Writers:
Don’t be afraid to combine two seemingly mismatched lifetime obsessions of yours in your art; like Potter did when she combined mycology and children’s stories.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 2.
Potter Had a Magical Relationship With Her Postman
During Potter’s lifetime, The Old Boys Club/Linnean Society blocked Potter and other women from flourishing professionally in science.
But thankfully Potter often received a daily vote of male confidence, camaraderie, and valuable, scientific feedback from a most unlikely source – her postman.
Potter’s postman happened to be a fascinating naturalist by the name of Charles Macintosh. He too was a brainy, mycologist and lifelong Platonic, pen pal, and mushroom specimen supplier of Potters.
Potter eventually was quite happily married at the age of 47 to William Hellis (not her postman.) She and Heelis were together for thirty years until Potter’s death at the age of seventy-seven.
Beatrix’s 2nd Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
You may be getting pushback or rejection in one area of your art life, but remember helping hands exist all around you. Your next mentor may be knocking on your door as we speak, just like Potter’s postman. So keep your eyes peeled for a new mentor, supporter, or collaborator.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 3.
There Was Hella Science Behind Potter’s Fiction
Potter and her brother loved the life sciences from early childhood on.
They had a mini-museum with a laboratory in their nursery/study. It was replete with microscopes, dissection tools, fossils, books, and insects both alive and dead.
“Beatrix Potter insisted on all the science and naturalism in her own stories to be exactly true,” said horticulturist and Potter scholar Marta McDowell when I interviewed her.
“If you read Beatrix Potter’s stories, said McDowell, “it’s not outrageous to think, ‘Oh there actually are rabbits that wear little velvet jackets’; because everything else is so real, it increases the reality of the things that are fantasy.”
For example, in The Tale of Miss Tittlemouse, a toad named Mr. Jackson encounters a butterfly tasting sugar cubes (atop a lovely china cup).
But this butterfly is no generic pink winged thing; it’s an accurately etched Vanessa atalanta (commonly known as the Red Admiral).
Beatrix’s 3rd Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
Would any of your fantastical drawings, paintings, sculpture, or prose be fortified by sprinkling in some science?
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 4.
Potter’s Pets Were the Unpaid Stars of Her Stories
One reason Beatrix Potter’s drawings of rabbits and mice are so “real” is that they’re the culmination of countless hours spent drawing from life.
The animals she employed most often as models, were, conveniently, from her own exotic menagerie.
Potter cared for pet rabbits (Peter Piper being one), pet mice (Xarifa to the left, being her favorite), as well as pet guinea pigs, and pet salamanders.
Beatrix even had pet hedgehogs and ferrets who kept her company and graced her book pages.
Beatrix’s 4th Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
If you haven’t had any formal art education, consider seeing that as a plus, not a minus, as Potter did.
Thank goodness I was never sent to school; it would have rubbed off some of the originality.” –Beatrix Potter
Love and respect yourself for learning what you wanted to learn on your own terms.
Potter’s drive for accuracy and excellence didn’t stop with the animals and the outdoor settings of her books. She did an insane amount of research for her domestic interiors as well.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 5.
Historic Home Museums Were a Secret of Her Success
McDowell told me: “You know the places Potter went in order to create these stories were real worlds. And sort of the only things that are added are the details of her imagination. But those details are all layered on top of actual things.”
Many of Potter’s discoveries took place in the grand historic manor houses and home museums of Wales, England, and Ireland where she and her family summered.
For example, Mr. McGregor’s potting shed in The Tale of Peter Rabbit was a replica (down to the geraniums, clay pots, and gardening tools) of a potting shed Beatrix had stumbled into at Bedwell Lodge in Hertfordshire in 1891.
Beatrix’s 5th Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
Be like Beatrix. Love doing fieldwork. (Here’s how.)
Poke about historic home museums (and maybe sell your work in their museum shops.)
Great info is all around us, for cheap. Visit an old theatre, a battlefield, a mosque, or a movie studio to get the historical details right for your painting or play. It will keep your brain bubbling, lend veracity to your writing and make you remember how cool it is to be an artist or writer. Pop over here to read my article How Visiting Famous Artists’ Home Museums Unleashes Wild Magic For Creatives.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 6:
Potter Camped Out at The V&A
Beatrix even researched all the vintage clothes and textiles in her books.
For example, Potter painstakingly copied the luscious silk, embroidered waistcoat that the mice work on in The Tailor of Gloucester (1903) from a period waistcoat she repeatedly sketched in detail, during visits to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Beatrix’s 6th Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
Get to a city museum, find an uncrowded gallery. Perch on one of those mattress-sized benches with a Moleskin notebook and pencil- let your beautiful cranium open and invite the muses in. (After all, Museum comes from the Greek term mouseion which means, “where the Muses dwell.”)
The city, with its art museums, engaged Potter’s mercurial mind, but our final fact and tip have to do with the countryside.
What You Don’t Know About Beatrix Potter Fact 7.
Beatrix Was a Bad Ass Business Woman Who Left a Behemoth of a Bequest to The National Trust
The forests and fields of Great Britain gave much to Beatrix Potter during her lifetime (1866-1943) and she returned the favor.
Potter was a savvy, tenacious businesswoman who succeeded despite repeated creative rejection. And to put it bluntly, she made bank.
Did you know Potter self-published Peter Rabbit, and even invented character merchandising? Meaning she got a hefty percentage of every naughty Peter Rabbit plush toy or teacup ever sold.
Over the course of her career as a working artist and writer, Potter quietly funneled her hard-earned money into consistent land purchases. She ended up buying owning over 4,000 acres of woods and farmland in England’s Lake District.
Potter purchased it purposefully to generously bequeath the land, her writing studio, Hilltop, (and her ongoing royalties) to the public through the National Trust upon her death in 1943.
According to Potter’s biographer Linda Lear, Potter’s net worth at the time of her death would be the equivalent of at least ten million dollars today.
Beatrix’s Final Bonus Tip for Artists and Writers:
Don’t assume you’re bad at business. Do research. Submit, submit, submit, never stop believing in the originality and value of your work, self-publish if you want, don’t sign your copyright away.
Oh, and buy land.
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Over to you. What do you think?
Do you love Beatrix Potter?
How did you first encounter her work? Film, books, T.V.?
I’d love to know in the comments below.
And don’t forget to pop over to my Mostly Free Resources for Artists Page
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You might also like these other Charmed Studio Posts:
How To Avoid The 9 Mistakes Children’s Book Authors Make
7 Comforting Books About Great Artists To Cozy Up With During Tough Times
Frida Kahlo: 7 Things You Don’t Know About This Mexican Maverick That Can Transform Your Art Career
How To Sell Your Art in Museum Stores
How Visiting Famous Artists’ Home Museums Unleashes Wild Magic For Creatives
5 Ways to Improve Your Art Writing in 5 Minutes
You have a wonderful way of uncovering little known facts about very creative, eclectic women and connecting them to what can be possible for those who dare to be different! I always learn something wonderful. Thank you! Weird is the greatest!
Thanks Denise! And cheers to “Weird is the Greatest!” I love this quote:
“While we have the gift of life, it seems to me the only tragedy is to allow part of us to die- whether it is our spirt, our creativity or our glorious uniqueness.” — Gilda Radner
I love this! She was so wonderful! Woman after my own heart!
Thanks so much. She was a firebrand, just like you. 🙂
Hi Thea — a friend sent me this and it is just charming. And inspiring! I feel a lot of similarities between Potter’s life and my own with rejections, lack of giving in, and now, self-publishing. Thank you for this article! I have a new hero in Potter and I’m signing up for more! 😀
-Erin Barnard
P.S.- In case anyone is interested in my picture book series, thank you: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/illustrayfuns/rhino-and-dino-picture-book-series
Dear Erin,
Congratulations on trusting yourself and being confident in your work and self-publishing. “Sometimes wandering the indirect path is exactly what’s required to get where we need to go.”
― S.K. Quinn
Wonderful stories!!!! I was not familiar with B.Potter. What a woman.
Hey Janet! Thank you for reading the piece and for your kind words. Yes, Potter was a pistol wasn’t she? Be well, Thea
Hi Thea. I always loved Beatrix Potter’s artwork. That is what attracted me to her books as a kid and even now. Artwork was something that would draw (no pun intended) me into stories and I would spend hours just looking over the details. I didn’t know all the details of her life that you wrote about. Very fascinating, now, I want to re-read her books now that I am a “grown-up”.
Thanks so much Karen for your intriguing thoughts. It is always a revelation to circle back to a book you loved as a kid and still find it meaningful as an adult. The Little Prince is like that isn’t it? I wonder how Beatrix will stand up to the test of time when you look over her books again? Is there a book you re-visited that you still loved?
Thanks for the post, Thea! I like how you created the tips and intermingled them in the article. An article that inspires and helps explore yourself as an artist and writer. I always enjoyed The Tale of Peter Rabbit. It always seems to lead to creative imagination.
Thanks so much Kevin, yeah her books do lead to creative imagination….why is that you think?
The way a writer, like Beatrix Potter, can take a normal situation and link to a family of rabbits is very creative. You can feel the energy she used to create. Others that come to mind are The Wizard Of Oz and Alice In Wonderland. I try to bring creativity to life in Jasper Sparks. By the way, while enjoying a cappuccino outside thinking how I was going to answer this, a small butterfly landed in my white, rich foam. What should I do? I could give it mouth to mouth but, my horrible coffee breath would take its life. I pulled the little rascal out and set him on the outdoor deck. It took a while but, the butterfly got its bearings back and flew off. It made my day brighter.
Oh Kevin that is an enchanting story. The magic of nature is what Potter captured and what you just caught (and released) with your words. Tell us more about Jasper Sparks. What’s that?
Jasper Sparks’ story was a late 2020 winter project and, the main character is a cowboy drifting West. He found a lot of raw, crusty, and ruthless folk out there. And he is trying to deal with it. Sometimes he seems a bit light, but he is alright.
https://www.dobe-art-studio.com/blog/167982/spiteful-jasper-sparks
This is great stuff, funny and wry. Have you tried submitting it as a children’s book? https://thecharmedstudio.com/9-mistakes-childrens-book-authors-make/
Thanks for this fabulous post! I love all of the amazing details – Ms. Potter was a fascinating lady, and I didn’t know that until now. I also had a set of the child sized books and was captivated and dazzled. They always had a place of honor in my various forts. You rock Thea – your blog and podcasts never fail to make my day!
oooh Kristen, tell me more about your various forts! Forts with books inside?! So so cool, I wish you were my neighbor when I was growing up. My girl neighbors just wanted to buy more Barbie clothes. Lol. I was like, “What? Barbies make no sense to me. Let’s build a fort in the woods!” I still feel that way.
Thank you so much for your vote of confidence.
I wish you’d been my neighbor too, as I had my fill of Barbie-clothes-girls! There was a creek behind my house that had miles of great fort locations along it. I think I had books in them to keep me company and have an excuse to spend time in a quiet dreamy place. You know, where rabbits in velvety coats seem completely normal.
Hello Thea,
Your blog is always a delightful read, but this one I really enjoyed even more than many of the others. Your research into Beatrix Potter brought to your readers many fascinating facts about her. You and she are both inspiring! Thank You!
Thank you Susan! What a wonderful treat to read your comment. I am blushing- for real. I find your blog equally inspiring.:) I appreciate you reading the piece and letting me know.
Hi Thea! thank you for this interesting post on Beatrix Potter, who I loved as a child, and whose books I read to my children and still jealously keep in my bookcase… but I did not know this very curious news! She really was an exceptional woman, a great example for us. And I love her attention to the life around her, whether it was a mouse or an embroidered waistcoat at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and also her friendship with her naturalist postman. It’s beautiful when you say “You may be getting pushback or rejection in one area of your art life, but remember helping hands exist all around you “: this is really true, and I could testify to it many times into my life.
I’m also glad I read your post while listening to the podcast, so now I also know your beautiful voice, wow!
Thanks again, a big hug!
Cristina
Thank you Cristina, your comment warms my heart. I love how you keep those books still in your own bookcase. That is quite a statement about the quality of a book isn’t it? I mean you had them read to you, you read them to your kids and then you still hold on to them for yourself because there is magic in there pages. The same is true with Tolkien or CS Lewis, they transcend generations. And thanks for your compliment on my voice, I was scared to do the audios at first but my good friend of 25 years has been pestering me the whole 25 years of our friendship to do something on audio, so I finally listened to her. (Only took a few decades).And I wanted to give people the option of being able to read it or listen to it and I enjoy it so much now that I am over the initial terror. Although …I haven’t mastered audio editing yet, so I am a “one take Charlie.” If I blow it badly, I have to start over. But like the proverb says the goal is to “fall 7 times, get up 8.” I so appreciate your support and ear. xo Thea
Great article. I have always loved Beatrix Potter books. My little Peter Rabbit books were a special treasure from childhood. The pictures and the vocabulary used made them seem set apart from all of my other books. I loved her scientifically accurate pictures but did not know her mind behind it. Thanks again for an interesting and inspiring article. Love and so much joy to you my mentor/friend.
ahhh Tracy, you made my damn day girl! When you say “little” Peter Rabbit books it reminds me that some of the editions or series of those were child-sized weren’t they? Potter was so smart, she just knew what kids wanted. She was the one who proposed selling doll versions of the characters. Anyway thinking of you and smiling and sending you a big hug. Thank you for your creative support, means so much to me.
Dear Thea, you managed to amaze me once again with the things you discover through your research. I had no idea that Beatrice Potter was a mycologist or what that even meant! I love how you relate back her life experiences to ours. Cheers
YAY it’s not easy to write about something you have not read about yet. You are a SMARTINA as my friend Paul would say- arepository of beautiful information about creatives. Is there still time for us to become mushroom scientists? xo Thea
I couldn’t fit this in the article but I will here. It is Potter’s intro to The Tailor of Glouster. You can see from this quote how obsessed she is with English history and fashion from one hundred years before her time. I think it is such a good example of writing and creating things that thrill and fascinate YOU. Isn’t it out there but wonderful at the same time? For a children’s story? What do you think?
“In the time of swords and periwigs and full-skirted coats with flowered lappets – when gentlemen wore ruffles, and gold-laced waistcoats of paduasoy and taffeta – there lived a tailor in Gloucester. He sat in a window of a little shop…” -Beatrix Potter (Tailor of Glouster).