“It’s not a story about grand gestures, but little things in life that can be quite crushing”
In conversation with Andrew Fairweather, creator of the new Middlemarch cover for recovering the classics.
I t was a usual New York day. Andrew Fairweather had just finished his new comic book. He was in an intermediate phase that overpowers writers and artists, wondering if it was time to get onto something new. He decided to go to his coterie of five other New Yorkers at a friend’s house, each with their own creative night projects. One of his friends recommended, “recovering the classics”. Andrew realized that his new project had chosen him. He made a mental intent note.
In parallel, on January 1, 1869, English author, George Eliot wrote her journal entry. Middlemarch, an unfinished book she had started was one of her tasks for the new year. All the work on the novel stopped in October 1869 with the death of her partner’s son. She started another book — “Miss Dorothea”, in the meantime. By 1872, these two projects came together and Middlemarch was released in an installment of eight books and Eliot was widely regarded as one of the greatest living English authors.
This is the story of Andrew’s design inspirations meeting Eliot’s literary classic. I’m excited to share the behind the scenes story of the new cover design for this recovering the classics project.
Why Middlemarch?
The first question I asked Andrew was why he chose Middlemarch as a part of his design project.
“It has definitely had the most long-lasting effects on my life. Like a slow burning effect. Some parts are the best I have ever read, and there are so many lessons. I don’t have a favorite book, but this has stayed the longest with me”, shared Andrew
Partly autobiographical and encompassing the major events in 19th century England, Middlemarch has been described by some as the greatest novel in the English language. Virginia Woolf called it “one of the few English novels written for grown-ups”. Given the propensity of readers and critics in the 19th century to perceive women authors as writers of light romances, George Eliot (or Mary Ann Evans) used a male pen name for her work to be taken more seriously.
“One of the images from the book that stuck out to me, is ‘being born in the wrong century’. The lead character of Dorothea in the book starts compiling research from her husband, an intellectual, Casaubon, and realizes the disappointments he has set himself up for through his studiousness. People in Middlemarch are shooting for things that are so high, being truly intellectual, that they don’t always feel the contentment. Characters are dealing with their own shortcomings in anti-climatic ways. It’s not a story about grand gestures, but little things in life that can be quite crushing”, shared Andrew thinking about his new cover design project.
My conversation with Andrew and thoughts about the book were veering towards a painfully universal theme. Didn’t everyone at a young age feel this acute sense of belonging someplace else?
‘It’s an adolescent thing’
Andrew Fairweather works at the New York Public Library. A lot of what Andrew does at the NYPL involves working with children and adolescents. Children’s illustrations from artists including Sophie Blackhall, Nick Blinko and Edward Gorey have left lasting impressions. As an after thought, the textures in ‘No Fighting, No Biting’ (by Else Holmelund Minarik) illustrated by Maurice Sendak reminded Andrew of his own new design take on the Eliot classic.
The original cover designs for MiddleMarch were set in provincial England and the fictitious “midlands”. I asked Andrew what inspired his image of a nerdy young girl with glasses and a book.
“When I think of Dorothea, I think every person who sees Middlemarch as a book with a reputation because there’s so much going on. It’s hard to guess why you start this book as a reader. Young, aspiring people who would like to grasp this, much like Dorothea want to understand the world as a system, and exercise a firm grasp of knowledge that can be held on to”, started Andrew.
Young aspirating readers like to simplify their world experiences through books. And yet, they often end up in complete despair, not able to make complete sense.
“It’s an adolescent thing”, declared Andrew.
“The book design shows Dorothea reading on the cover and reading for her is understanding the world. Yet, her countenance is full of a confused look of despair. She’s with a book and yet looking away. One of the most revealing thing that occurs to her as a young aspiring reader is that she realizes that the world can’t be simplified as such. She is reading to fill a different void so that she can break things down intellectually. And she fails at it. Yes, there’s a book nerdiness to the Dorothea on the cover — I think that Eliot designed Ms. Brooke’s character to inspire aspiring intelligences”.
Finally- ‘There’s more to life than understanding it’
“All of Eliot’s characters make mistakes, and yet you don’t think of these people as difficult. It’s hard to do in art. Like look at something in whole and yet solely symbolically. Fraud and yet not evil. The complexity of the portraits and their growth is incredibly rewarding”, shares Andrew.
It may be a century old, but the conflicts the characters and the small nuances of their lives finds a connect with anyone in today’s times. Our own lives don’t necessarily form a part of a great movie set, it’s the small things that give us strength and leave us in despair. Maybe there is more to life than understanding it, completely.
Inspired by the new design, Andrew recommended that I read the book again.
“You might be surprised with what you find. It’s an excellent book”, emphasized Andrew.
Did this book design the way we’ll look at the classic? Perhaps not. Instead it may have just chronicled the real draw of why this book remains a classic. It’s mildly satiating that we’re not all alone in not understanding it all in our own lives. But the romance of exploration is still what pushes us to make an attempt.
What impressions did the book and Andrew’s design leave on you? Do share with us in the comments!
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About:
Andrew Fairweather works as an information assistant at the New York Public Library by the day, and as an visual artist by the night. He first read Middlemarch at 24. He quotes Rebecca Mead’s “My life in Middlemarch” on how reading the novel at different points can reveal different aspects.
Upasna Kakroo is a storytelling fellow for CAN’s ‘recovering the classics’ project. She’s the co-founder of a business storytelling & branding firm, Brandanew. She first read Middlemarch at 16. She plans to re-read it with immediate effect.
