Not only has Zelinsky crafted the words, but he is the illustrator as well. I love how he has captured the Italian Renaissance style in his oil paintings. He truly is a gifted artist.
He has shown similar style in other picture books, two of which are Rumpelstiltskin
and Hansel and Gretel
So I am always interested when an artist takes on another style that seems so unassociated to what I have come to expect from him/her. Here's Zelinsky's cover art for a more current book called Shivers in the Fridge, written by Fran Mahushkin.
This is the story of a family who live in a cold, dark place. They are not happy here, always startled and frightened by sudden blinding light accompanied by a monster's hand reaching in to remove part of their edible furnishings. They need a new place to call home.
Clever story and artwork, but I find it's always good to look at other examples of work in order to get a better picture of the scope of the artist's talent.
Known for his versatility, Mr. Zelinsky does not feel his work represents a specific style. He said the following in an interview:
"I want the pictures to speak in the same voice as the words. This desire has led me to try various kinds of drawings in different books. I have used quite a wide stretch of styles, and I'm fortunate to have been asked to illustrate such a range of stories."
You can find out more about Zelinsky and his books at his website.
3 comments:
Thought I would stop in and see what's happening. This is a very interesting blog. Thanks. Joanie
We own Rapunzel, Rumplestiltskin, Hansel & Gretel and the Nesbit books. I think it's amazing that he can successfully produce such a variety of styles, but I think you can tell which of them I prefer! Not that I'm not into whimsical...but I love the richness and detail in his more elaborate style. (those are all the right technical terms, right, Miss Artist Lady?)
Lori,
Yes, great technical terms. You are a credit to the artistic community throughout the entire world.
I too prefer his work in the previous books. It's fun to show students the various covers. They are surprised to find out that the same illustrator produced such different styles. I think they are encouraged to see the simpler artwork as something they might be able to do.
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