When I was a little girl, my Mum and Dad bought two A2 sized posters to put on my walls. I wasn't allowed to use blu-tack as it might ruin the (rather hideous 1970s) wallpaper, so my Dad bought some plastic slides to go top and bottom, with a bit of thread hanging the posters to the nail in the wall. I remember the posters like they were burned on the inside of my eyelids. Molly Brett.
You may never have heard of her, but her cards were well stocked in a shop in Reigate, where I lived. I LOVED her pictures. They were mainly woodland scenes, with fairies, creatures of the forest and teddies all co-habiting. Not only did I have these two enormous pictures on the wall, but I had a collection of postcards that I probably still have somewhere. There was just something about Molly Brett's work that sparked my imagination. Was it really possible that children could live in harmony with cats, geese, hedgehogs and elves?
This was one of my favourite books, A Surprise for Dumpy.
I was also a bit obsessed with Richard Scarry's Busy, Busy World. I especially liked Sven Svenson and Pierre, the Parisian Policeman.
Absorbing other people's work is a really helpful thing to do as an artist. Working out how someone made those marks on the page can fuel your own work. I have spent many years looking at the books that sing to me. Sometimes I don't even know why I like a picture; I just know I do. But it doesn't matter why you like it. What counts is how it is going to change you as a maker of image. Here are a few of the people that have shaped my world.
All of these illustrators have different ways of working and approaching their subjects. I wouldn't want to try to analyse why I like these illustrators for fear of losing a bit of the magic. All I can say is that each one has brought a ray of sunshine to my day each time I have picked up one of their books.
So thank you, lovely story makers. You rock my world. xx
No comments:
Post a Comment