476 Decorative Designs (Dover Electronic Clip Art)

by John Leighton

Black-and-white selections from a rare original sourcebook depict 476 decorative images of ornamental ironwork and blazonry, florals, and human and mythical figures. A highly useful collection of beautifully rendered, royalty-free images that will be welcomed by artists, illustrators, craftworkers, and countless enthusiasts of the decorative arts.

48 pages, Paperback

First published October 12, 2005

About the author

John Leighton (pseud. Luke Limner) was an English artist notable for his book illustrations and book cover designs. His talent for design found early expression in the publication "Suggestions in Design ... for the Use of Artists and Art Workmen" (1852). This was a work that expounded Leighton's values and beliefs with regard to the history of design. He used the ornaments and designs repeatedly in the thirty years after its publication with regard to illustrations within books, and for many hundreds of drawings for book cover designs.

Leighton was one of the first to study book plates, and encourage their collection, and in the early 1890s helped in the establishment of an Ex-Libris Society, of which he was the Vice-President. As a publisher, he produced a journal for the society called the Book-Plate Annual.

Several works by the artist have been sold at auction, including 'Edwardian Woman Sitting in an Armchair Admiring a Floral Display' sold at John Moran Auctioneers, Inc. 'Antiques & Decorative Arts Auction' in 2011. There have been Several articles about John Leighton, including 'Art Fund brings Sir Denis Mahon's 57 Italian Baroque masterpieces into the collections of six UK museums' written for ArtDaily in 2013.