Slice of Life Story Challenge March 11 - A LOOK BEHIND THE BOOK

It was extremely hot in my world again today. This exceptional run of autumn weather persists. Breaking records, baking the earth around us and turning us towards the beach. Today we endure our eighth autumn day above 32 degrees (90 degree Fahrenheit) = a record!

It was also a public holiday across Australia today. We had an action plan for the day. Get out early before it got too hot and take our grandchildren to the Mornington Regional Gallery to view a wonderful collection of works by Australian authors and illustrators for children books. It is currently on loan form the State Library of Victoria until April.

We were looking for the story behind all those iconic books and the details of the illustrating techniques employed to create that special magic that is the picture story book. The children took their own sketch books just in case they saw something they might want to capture or imitate. For Vicki and I, it was a chance to more deeply connect with the work of authors and illustrators we have known throughout our professional lives. This was a special and affirming experience. I think the children picked up on our keen anticipation.

We were privileged to see the craft tools Ron Brooks used when creating the amazing illustrations for ‘Fox’ when collaborating with Margaret Wild. This iconic Australian book is a favourite of Ralph Fletcher. We also viewed Margaret Wild’s original text.

We viewed the initial storyboard for the illustrations for the book, ‘Lucy Goosey’ by Ann James. Along side we saw the final illustrations in all their glorious colour. We saw Jane Tanner’s beautifully realistic illustrative work in all its intricate detail. Magical artwork employing coloured pencil , chalk, water colour and ink.

Terry Denton’s, concertina miniature mock up books with their illustrative edits were there for us to feast our eyes upon. -Fine, water colour sketches which he initially shares with the author, before proceeding to the next phase of the process. This incredible collection represents the backstage secrets of these creative people. We saw Bob Graham’s sketch book with its fascinating early draft illustrations for ‘Greetings From Sandy Beach.’

We marvel at the fact that Academy Award winning author and illustrator, Shaun Tan took five years to create thousands of illustrations of which he finally used 128 in his book, ‘The Arrival.’ –Such commitment.

We got to see up close the David Miller’s sculptures. Sculptures made by cutting, folding, colouring and pasting paper. It takes this meticulous and gifted man, about eight months to create enough sculptures for a whole book. He photographs them to create his final pages.  These people have what my old high school Principal called –stickability!

Our time at the gallery was illuminating and informative. We all left on a high. We felt that we had been allowed special access.

Upon returning home, the children immediately returned to their sketchbooks. Time well spent for viewers of all ages.  After this impressive cultural immersion, we  shared lunch before retiring to the beach to see out the heat of the day.

Ron Brooks used these special tools to craft the illustrations for Margaret Wild's 'Fox.'

 
Bob Graham's sketchbook. Great for kids to see.

Terry Denton's mini mock up books

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. elsie11 March 2013 at 23:49

    Seeing original art from picture books is a treat for the eyes and mind. Thank you for sharing this wonderful exhibit. I was able to see original art from some Caldecott winners at the Chicago Art Institute many years ago. There is awe in the books, but awesome in the original art.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular With Other Visitors

Writing Opposite Poems

Image
 O pp o s ite  P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not eve...
Read more

Writing About Reading - Reading Reflection Journals:

Image
UPDATED February 2022 Writing in response to literature can be a great way for students to organize their thoughts, explore what they think, and generate ideas. One of the strengths of writing in journals is that it allows students to capture all of those great ideas that generally float off into the air during the discussion.  Journal writing can also become drudgery if students are asked to write too often, given little choice or inspiration in what to write, or if they simply don't have anything to say. While some students eagerly share their impressions about selections they have read in class discussions, others are less comfortable and keep their thoughts to themselves. In an effort to encourage all students to think more about what they read and confidently share their observations and opinions, some teachers are turning to the reading reflection journal and are gaining insights they never anticipated.  The Value of Reflection Journals   Journals assist teachers...
Read more

Learning How to 'Zoom In' When Writing

Image
It is important for young writers to understand that not all parts of a story are equal. There are parts through which a writer moves quickly, and important parts where the writer slows down and lingers a while. This is where the writer might intensify the action or reveal the character’s reactions in greater detail. Young writers need to know that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the author. The author consciously zooms in. The writer uses a magnifying glass to view a part of the story more closely; to focus on a moment and to slow down time. When an important part of the story is enlarged upon, it   is a signal to the reader, that this part of the story is important. The strategy of ‘zooming in’ goes by many names: ‘exploding a moment’ ‘magnifying a moment’, ‘hotspot’ ‘snapshot’, ‘adding detail’ or ‘slowing the action.’  What ever the name, the idea is the same. The author writes in a way that expands a significant part of the story with the intentio...
Read more

Slice Of Life Story-The Trials Of A Left Handed Writer

Image
Amazingly I learnt to write using my left hand. An achievement against the prevailing beliefs of the day. My very first teacher saw it as her mission in life to ‘fix’ the poor, wretched little boy suffering from what she clearly diagnosed as left handed disease. She must have thought, 'This child must be re formatted! If he remains left handed he will be forever condemned to writing in a scrawl that no one will be able to read. Ugly hand, ugly hand.' ...They tried to say it couldn't be done, it mustn't be done. They took the pencil out of my left hand and placed it in my right hand. It felt unnatural. It felt weird. It was not right. More to the point it was not left. I was not about to conform. At least they didn't try tying my hand behind my back. Watch me I said. I may be an oddball, left handed scribbler but I am a determined oddball. I mean how boring would the world be if everyone wrote with their right hand? So I dug my toes in –and my hands to...
Read more

Exploring Themes in Poetry With Emerging Writers

Image
There is so much more to poetry than haiku and acrostics. Yet, so many young poets never get to experience the rich breadth of poetry beyond these highly structured forms. Why? Primarily, it’s about their teachers comfort levels with poetry. We often teach to what we know, meaning that being adventurous and taking young poets into new realms is not part of the poetic landscape for many. This sells young poets and poetry itself short. Last week I had the pleasure to again work with a group of young poets from Derrimut Primary School grade 5/6 in Melbourne’s west. We have been exploring patterns and repetition in poetry. We have explored personification as a literary device to develop the writing of poetry. We delved into the idea of writing through a mask to provide inanimate and animate entities with a voice. They told stories in words from their own perspective. On this occasion we again went to the edges and began to explore poetry through themes. We discussed a range ...
Read more