Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Collage by illustrators

Last week I attended an excellent lecture by our wonderful collage illustrator Jeannie Baker. Walker Books hosted the event as a way to share Jeannie's new book - Playing with Collage.



This book will be published in June 2019 and will be an essential purchase for all school libraries.

By coincidence I borrowed this book, last week, from the Prep School library which I am lucky enough to visit each week.



The biggest difference between these two books is in the way collage techniques are explained. In Playing with Collage Jeannie gives young readers ideas for collecting materials and ways to use them in designs with practical tips about preserving flowers and leaves and mounting your picture.  From Walker Books: "There are no right or wrong answers in this treasure of a book, it's all about trusting your instincts ... and playing!"

Lois takes a different approach using examples from her own work. She deconstructs her images showing how she has incorporated different scraps - hence the title. Lois says: "My art technique is called collage. I cut out scraps, like pieces of a puzzle, that I assemble and glue into place."

The other important thing about these two titles is that they are written by two famous children's book illustrators and so can be used as a way to explore their work.

I have a small Pinterest collection of work by illustrators who use collage. Here are a few of my favourite titles which use collage including a book by Ezra Jack Keats and one by Patricia Mullins:





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