Show and Tell
Exploring the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustration
-- School Library Journal, 4/10/2008
Show & Tell: Exploring the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustration (Chronicle, 2008).
The past half century has witnessed an extraordinary growth in the field of children’s book art and in this illuminating volume Dilys Evans, founder of The Original Art annual exhibition of children’s book illustration, explores that development through the work of 12 distinguished artists. The individuals Evans honors represent a remarkable range of styles, techniques, and media—from Hilary Knight’s pen-and-ink drawings for Kay Thompson’s "Eloise" titles (S & S) to Bryan Collier’s deeply hued collage and watercolor work in Uptown to Brian Selznick’s 284 pencil illustrations in the "ground-breaking" The Invention of Hugo Cabret (Scholastic, 2007).
In discussing the work of each innovator, the author weaves in delightful and telling details about each individual’s personal life and career and notes how for many of the artists, it was youthful “passions,” along with talent, that led to a celebrated career in fine art illustration. For Lane Smith, family road trips, a fascination with the space age, and the work of Charles Schultz were inspirations, while a childhood spent in the Pennsylvania countryside surrounded by farms and animals informs much Betsy Lewin’s humorous watercolor art.
All of the artists Evans has chosen to include are storytellers in their own right, and the challenge of creating visual worlds is explored through descriptions of techniques and quotes from the artists. Betsy Lewin: “I always felt that my pictures were storytelling and subconsciously I knew that I was a storyteller….” Harry Bliss on the advice he received from his teacher, Martha Earlbacher: “She would say to me, ‘You don’t want to be a technician….You need to learn to put art into context.’ ” David Wiesner comments, “Storytelling was the big part of what I liked to do with the art I was making…it was the storytelling process that motivated the pictures.” The author considers why David Shannon is the “…master of the story ‘about to happen’ ” and Petra Mathers's “…ability to express the intangible…moments of quiet and comfort and safety.”
For each artist, Evans considers a sampling of works, examining matters of color, style, composition, light, mood, and sensibility. Trina Schart Hyman’s paintings for her retelling of Little Red Riding Hood (Holiday House, 1983) and Margaret Hodges’s Saint George and the Dragon (Little, Brown 1984) are among the picture book illustrations examined in a discussion of her work. Paul Zelinsky's art for Rika Lesser's retelling of Hansel and Gretel (Putnam, 1996), his own version of Rapunzel (Dutton, 1997), and other titles is reviewed. Throughout the book, quality reproductions in black and white and color accompany Evans’s insightful remarks.
Read SLJ's interview with Dilys Evans
