BERYL COOK (1926-2008)

'My flower fairies, and there have been quite a few, are usually sturdy girls dressed in petals busily engaged in appropriate fairy business. A huge white lily growing in the garden gave me the idea for this picture. As a change the fairies would be modern, dress in leather clothes and ride bikes - something I wish I had enough nerve to do myself. In a picture of antique motorbikes I found a smart black and white sidecar, which was just the right thing for a Fairy Queen to ride in in comfort. Now they can speed off by wheel and wing to a very important engagement in the vegetable garden (not yet illustrated)' (B. Cook, Bouncers, London, 1991, n.p.).