Percy’s childhood sketchbook is a highlight among the many treasures in the collection at the Percy Grainger Home and Studio. With multiple pages of his pencil drawings and watercolor images, it is evidence of Percy’s remarkable drawing ability from a young age. Additionally, the sketchbook is reflective of interests that continued through Grainger’s life. Images include trains, boats, mythologic scenes, and even musical notations such as notes and staff.

Items in personal collections are often not dated and/or the provenance may be muddled. Looking at similar drawings by Percy, also in the collection at the house, we can confidently date the images in the sketchbook to about 1887-88, when Percy was 5 and 6 years old. However, when opening the cover, an inscription reads: To Darling Percy/With loving thoughts always/From Autie May/20 Aug 1924. It seems that this book had been saved in Australia with Auntie May and was sent to Percy in 1924, when he lived in White Plains, NY.

Percy sketched and painted in watercolor throughout his life.  He designed the graphics for many of his published scores, creating the lettering and decorative borders, choosing colors, and planning the layouts. He also painted landscapes, copied folk patterns of embroidery and beadwork, and created detailed watercolor diagrams of his Free Music machines. The Percy Grainger Home and Studio is a showcase of the creative output of both Percy and his wife Ella.  Additional information and images can be found on the PGS website under Highlights from the Collection. And, follow us on Instagram @percygraingersociety for a variety of images featuring the house, collections and events.