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Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2015 11:26 am
by CollectIreland
I'm looking for information about the Scholastic Production Company of Belfast who produced postcards in the 1930/50s period - possibly earlier and later. The company seems to have been wound up in 1955 and despite extensive trawling of Belfast Arts and Library institutions I’ve turned up precious little. There’s nothing available online save my own postings. What happened to their archives?

I’m chiefly interested in their artist cards including those by Maurice C. Wilks, Pat MacCormack, Terence Henry, Eva Porter, Gladys MacCabe, Olive Whitmore and L.Murdoch. The cards are predominantly Ulster landscape paintings or 'ethnic' type ones.
Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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Above a card by Olive Whitmore, an American-born equestrian artist and illustrator, with the giveaway crinkled edge typical of most Scholastic cards.

More samples shortly.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2015 11:29 am
by CollectIreland
This one is by L.Murdoch (probably a lady who taught art in Belfast) but no definitive information yet.

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Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Aug 12, 2015 11:38 am
by CollectIreland
And my most recent Scholastic purchase, found on a German site last week, is by Gladys MacCabe. She was born in Northern Ireland in 1918 and is a relatively big name in the Irish art world. This is the only postcard that I've come across by her published by Scholastic or anybody else for that matter.

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Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Fri Jan 01, 2016 1:10 am
by CollectIreland
Another recent purchase which I believe to be a Scholastic Productions card but I have nobody to ask. Presumably the SP Co.logo indicates that it is the same concern? Thanks in advance for any information.

Happy New Year.

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Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Tue May 30, 2017 12:50 pm
by CollectIreland
Still plodding along with my Scholastic postcard collection and due to their scarcity I tend to buy almost everything - especially the art cards. Below is my latest acquisition - purchased from a French seller on Delcampe - €5.65 incl.p+p. Not one of the artist's finest works but worth having anyway. I have so far identified 26 cards by Pat MacCormack and purchased 12 of them. Needless to say I still haven't been able to find out any information about the artist - not even whether they were male or female!
Any information about Scholastic Productions and their artists would be gratefully received.

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More about Scholastic cards and their artists on my site here: https://irishpostcards.wordpress.com

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Fri Jun 23, 2017 1:51 pm
by CollectIreland
I'm still pursuing Scholastic Art cards and I picked up this on eBay during the week. Hand-coloured/tinted and not of a type that I'm familiar with from Scholastic, it turned out to have no publisher indicated. Apparently, hand colouring died out in the 1930's and this would fit the date that the original painting would have been done. It (the card) is not a thing of beauty but it's by an Irish artist that I collect and a snip at just over £3.

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Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Mon Jul 10, 2017 9:22 pm
by CollectIreland
I picked up another Scholastic card on eBay this evening - a scarce one by Maurice C Wilks - only the second one I have come across in the last 2/3 years. As luck would have it two other people wanted it too and so it ended up costing me just over £10. One of the artist's better cards!

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"An Antrim Homestead and Islandmagee"

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2017 10:46 am
by CollectIreland
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My latest acquisition, from an Irish eBay seller who never indicates the publisher, and as this particular type of Scholastic (SP Co.) card closely resembles a similar Valentine's series a sharp eye is required. The 'poem' on Valentine's cards usually credits the poet as Eva Brennan whereas on Scholastic cards the word Copyright is all that appears.

This particular card is interesting not only for the extravagant display of crockery on the dresser but also for the poignant message on the back from a soldier in Londonderry to a friend in America. Posted in 1942 and passed by the censor, the soldier says that he's home at the moment but his leave will be up soon and he hopes to see everybody before long....

Always more here: https://irishpostcards.wordpress.com

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2017 9:33 am
by CollectIreland
Some of Scholastic's Real photo cards are quite attractive and I picked up this one on eBay last March for just £3 including p+p. Postally used in 1949.

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I'm still floundering about trying to get any morsel of information about the company and/or the various artists that supplied work to it. Anything, no matter how trivial, is of interest to me.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 5:22 pm
by CollectIreland
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My latest two Scholastic Real Photo cards. These date from the late 1930's early 1940''s - as far as I have been able to establish - and are an attractive addition to my collection. I purchased them from Irish/American eBay dealer Noelle Sullivan in Montana, USA and I cannot recommend her strongly enough. Noelle trades as http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/yellowstonesu ... 7675.l2559 and is always prepared to go the extra mile for her customers.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2017 10:16 pm
by CollectIreland
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My latest Scholastic (?) purchase (above) is a rather nice card of the Garron Tower in County Antrim. However, even by the standards of Scholastic this is a mystery card with no indication on the back as to publisher or printer. The number on the front - 8000 - is low enough to be one of their cards and the quotation is just Copyright rather than attributed to an individual. Is there really nobody out there who knows about Scholastic Productions or collects their cards? Indeed, is there any other postcard collector in the British Isles - apart from the usual few suspects - who is computer literate enough to post on this forum?? I was the only poster in September and probably will be in October and I'm in the Republic of Ireland! :(

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2018 9:28 pm
by CollectIreland
Trying to put some order on my collecting recently and have decided that two more blogs are the way to go. The first, devoted to the Scholastic Production Company, went public today and I hope that some of you will find it interesting. Please contact me if you have any Scholastic cards that you might be prepared to sell/exchange or if you have any information about the company, its employees, artists etc.

The site can be found here: https://scholasticproductions.wordpress.com

A second site devoted to Wrench (Irish) cards is coming shortly.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2018 8:32 am
by CollectIreland
Still adding to my collection of cards but virtually no information about the company or the artists that supplied work to it. Any information or cards still urgently wanted! Thanks in advance.

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9020 A Rest by the Way by Pat MacCormack.

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9027 Passing the News by Pat MacCormack.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2018 12:32 pm
by CollectIreland
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There's somebody else out there collecting Scholastic cards or perhaps it's the location? This sold on eBay recently for an incredible £60 for what's a very ordinary card indeed. Whilst I haven't seen another example I wouldn't dream of paying this sort of amount for it.

Still no word from anybody about Scholastic - perhaps the buyer might see this post.

Re: Scholastic Production Co. Belfast

Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2018 5:57 am
by eastlondonpostcard
The artist postcards are the best in my opinion... have you seen these ones here: https://www.ebid.net/uk/perl/main.cgi?e ... ription=on