What+is+the+role+of+the+art+and+artists+in+picture+storybooks?

Click the Edit button (far right side of screen) and paste your content in the space below. Make sure to Save changes before exiting.

**Art and Artists in Picture Storybooks** The role of the art and artists in picture storybooks is incredibly important. While the author provides the verbal clues in a picture storybook, the illustrator incorporates the visual ones that are needed to gain a full understanding of the story. The illustrator uses his creativity and originality to create a more comprehensive understanding of the elements in the story. Visual clues to enrich the text, develop the main idea, and foreshadow events in the text are found in the illustrations. Together these factors all contribute to a successfully illustrated picture storybook that flows from one page to the next in a seemingly effortless manner.

The artist establishes the characters, setting, tone, mood, and theme of the story. These elements are represented through the use of line, space, color, size, texture and perspective. A child’s first evaluation of a picture storybook is in the appeal of the cover art. This sets the tone of the book while giving the reader a first glimpse at some key details and characters they will encounter in the book. In //Yoshi’s Feast// illustrated by Yumi Heo, the artist sets the tone of the Japanese folktale with her beautiful use of printed origami paper incorporated in the cover and front pages. She portrays Yoshi dancing with her fan in front of some tiny villagers. Yoshi’s importance is established by her larger size and her motion by the curvy lines of her body.

Development of appealing characters and setting establish the foundation of the story. In the story //Knuffle Bunny// by Mo Willems, the artist introduces the reader to Trixie, a happy-go-lucky toddler. His use of cartoon characters on photographed scenery focuses the attention on the characters with the secondary importance being the setting. The illustrator uses facial expressions, actions, and speech bubbles to enrich the text. Readers can fully appreciate the range of emotions and the urgency that Trixie exhibits over her long journey from and to the laundromat.

Mood is a powerful emotion that the illustrator must convey. In Allen Say’s book //Grandfather’s Journey//, the pictures evoke many different moods and emotions. The visual portrayals of grandfather as small in front of a train and on a tiny ledge in the desert show his awe in everything he saw in America. The soft colors and intricate brush strokes illustrated in his walk in the farm fields and boat ride with his wife convey contentment. While the dark coloring and shadows on the rubble of his former home along with his worn face and poor posture as an old man depicts sadness. Through his art, the illustrator has the ability to show children it’s ok to be silly, scared, sad, pensive, inquisitive or hopeful.

Perspective and the complexity of texture are shown in Owl Moon, illustrated by John Schoenherr. The contrasting layers of rich browns and creams along with the dark lines help create the soft feathered texture of the magnificent owl. The illustrator gives a sense of the owl’s perspective high up in the tree as it watches the little boy and his father quietly walk through the snow on forest floor. Illustrators combine all of these elements in a cohesive way to visually represent the story’s elements.

The illustrator’s choice of pictorial content can give the reader a clue to an event that will occur later in the book. In the book, //Ginger Bear// illustrated by Mini Grey, the first page of the book shows Horace playing with a lump of pastry while his dog is closely watching. The artist’s background information, shown in small picture inlays, provides the reader with crucial information of Horace’s dog. At the story’s climax, a dark figure is looming in the background waiting to get his turn with the cookie. The illustrator’s use of history and foreshadowing add another layer to this sweet tale.

The use of illustrations in children’s books to develop the main idea is a wonderful tool. In the book //A Bad Case of Stripes,// David Shannon shows the growing internal conflict of the main character, Camilla Cream, trying to conform while losing herself in an increasingly exaggerated array of colors, shapes and lines. In the end, Camilla realizes that she doesn’t care anymore what others think, she just wants what she loves, which is lima beans. In the book //What if Everybody Did That?,// illustrated by Colleen Madden, the illustrator uses a two page approach to show the main character’s effect on his surroundings and then exaggerates the behavior on the following page showing a cumulative effect.

Sometimes the art adds another layer of depth to the story and, as stated by Maurice Sendak, it can tell a story within a story. In the story //Officer Buckle and Gloria// by Peggy Rathmann, the illustrator uses visual pictures of Gloria to add pictorial humor to Officer Buckle’s more serious text. The ability of the illustrator to evoke a strong emotion can transform the story into a truly memorable reading experience.

The field of art styles in picture storybooks is as varied and large as the types of mediums. Some of these art styles are collage, realism, and folk art. Lois Ehlert in her book, //Leaf Man//, used leaf combinations to create an assortment of animals in a collage. As an example of realism, Mary Azarian used intricate woodcuts as her medium in //Snowflake Bentley// to accentuate the simple detail found in each snowflake. Tomie dePaola chose folk art in //Strega Nona Her Story// to depict his two dimensional illustrations done in dark outlines and watercolors.

When combining the story’s elements in a complimentary cohesive way within the chosen style, the illustrator adds an incredible depth to the picture storybook. Art in children’s books is a very powerful tool and as such the illustrator’s role is extremely important. If it is true that a picture tells a thousand words, than an artist’s work in a picture storybook speaks volumes.


 * __Activity for Grade 1__**

This activity is designed to be the first part in a month long exploration of prior Caldecott Award winning books in the month leading up to the announcement of current winner.

1. Explain to children that each year the Caldecott Award is given to a book that shows amazing pictures. The Caldecott is given to the illustrators not the author. (Author’s receive a different award, the Newbery Award for writing.) 2. Inform the children that there are also books that are runners-up and are given the Caldecott Honor Award. 3. Show children the book //Snowflake Bentley// written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and illustrated by Mary Azarian and point out the Caldecott sticker. 4. Tell children it is about a real person and give them some background information. 5. Have children look at the cover and tell you what they think is important. 6. Tell the children to make a silent connection gesture when they see something in the picture that gives them a better understanding of the story as you read the story. 7. After finishing the book ask what pictures helped them get a better understanding of the story. 8. Display other winners in the library for children to look at after the discussion is over.


 * __Sources__**:

dePaola, Tomie. //Strega Nona Her Story//. illus. by author. New York: Scholastic, 1996.

Ehlert, Lois. //Leaf Man//. illus. by author. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc., 2005.

Fronhardt, Darcie Clark. //Teaching Art with Books Kids Love. Colorado: Fulcrum Publishing, 1999.//

Grey, Mini. //Ginger Bear//. illus. by author. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004.

Javernick, Ellen. //What if Everybody Did That?// illus. by Colleen M. Madden. Tarrytown: Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books, 2010.

Kahujawa, Kimiko. //Yoshi’s Feast//. illus. by Yumi Heo. New York: Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc., 2000.

Martin, Jacqueline Briggs. //Snowflake Bentley//. illus. by Mary Azarian. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998.

Norton, Donna E. //Through The Eyes of a Child: An Introduction to Children’s Literature//, 7th ed. Pearson: New Jersey, 2007.

Rathmann, Peggy. //Officer Buckle and Gloria//. illus. by author. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1995.

Shannon, David. //A Bad Case of Stripes//. illus. by author. New York:The Blue Sky Press, 1998.

Willems, Mo. //Knuffle Bunny//. illus. by author. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2004.

Yolen, Jane. //Owl Moon. illus. by// John Schoenherr. New York: Philomel Books, 1987.

"YouTube - Maurice Sendak on What Being an Illustrator Means." //YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.// Web. 2 Sept. 2010.