Ernest Howard Shepard OBE MC (10 December 1879 – 24 March 1976) was an English artist and book illustrator.

[4] After a productive year there, he attended the Royal Academy Schools, winning a Landseer scholarship in 1899 and a British Institute prize in 1900.

His wife, who was also a painter, found a home in London's West End venue for her own modest output during a 25-year career.

[9][10][11][12] By the autumn of 1916, Shepard started working for the Intelligence Department sketching the combat area within the view of his battery position.

His courage and coolness were conspicuous.Later in 1917, the 105th Siege Battery participated in the final stages of the Battle of Passchendaele where it came under heavy fire and suffered a number of casualties.

[10][20] At the end of the year, it was sent to help retrieve a disastrous situation on the Italian Front, travelling by rail via Verona before coming into action on the Montello Hill.

[10][15] Shepard missed the Second Battle of the Piave River in April 1918, being on leave in England (where he was invested with his MC by King George V at Buckingham Palace) and where he was attending a gunnery course.

[10][22] After the Armistice of Villa Giusti in November 1918, Shepard was promoted to acting major in command of the battery, and given the duty of administering captured enemy guns.

Realising his illustrator's contribution to the book's success, the writer arranged for Shepard to receive a share of his royalties.

[33] The painting is displayed in the Pavilion Gallery at Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, the city after which Winnie is named.

[41] In 1966, he called the Disney Animation short film Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree a travesty.