In Lin Oliver’s introduction for Jerry Pinkney, she refers to him as a “living legend” whose body of work “is life-altering for this generation of children.” In his fifty plus year career, he has illustrated over 100 titles.
When thinking about his work, for him, everything is about connection. He needs a personal connection. And asks himself:
What do I connect to?
Because if he connects to something, his hope is that others will connect to it as well. From a young age, storytelling, fables, and fairytales have been a part of his life. His stories come from his mother’s love of Hans Christian Anderson and the tradition of oral storytelling from south.
From the first book he illustrated, THE ADVENTURES OF SPIDER by Joyce Cooper Arkhurst (Little, Brown Books, 1964) to his most recent project, A PLACE TO LAND by Barry Wittenstein (Holiday House/Neal Porter Books, 2020), Jerry believes his purpose is to interpret the written word and to find the energy within it.
Jerry mesmerizes us with slide after slide of his impressive body of work and his love and commitment to getting to the heart of each and every story he tells. And by the end of his presentation, there is no doubt that he is truly a living legend.
No comments:
Post a Comment