So, here’s how it went down today at Mazza’s Summer Conference: Aaron Reynolds got up to speak. I had my notebook. I had my pen. At the top of the page, I wrote the date, then “Aaron Reynolds.” Then, “Chicago.” (It’s where he lives.) Then …. Aaron Reynolds talked performed captured my attention for an […]
David Shannon was destined to become a picture book author and illustrator. Literally. Destined. He wrote his Caldecott Honor book No, David when he just five years old. Well, a rough draft at least. Destiny. After several years of editorial illustration, producing work that was usually serious and sometimes dark, David returned to the drawings […]
Lynne Avril never intended to become a picture book illustrator, even though a very insightful sixth grade teacher helped her to see herself as an artist. Even after she obtained an art degree, Lynne still found that her work was eclectic, and she found it difficult to nail down a style. But that’s not too […]
Mazza’s artist are all talented. They’re all brilliant. They amaze, entertain, and dazzle us with their stories. But they don’t always agree with one another. Take, for example, today’s keynote artists. Laura Vaccaro Seeger and Bob Staake just couldn’t find common ground. Well, at least not on this one issue. But it’s okay. They agreed […]
With a background in shellfishing (yes, that would be commercial clam digging) and as a Disney art dircector, John Rocco followed his passion for children’s literature to a successful career as an author and illustrator. John studied art at the Rhode Island School of Design and School of Visual Arts in New York City. He found […]
The 2013 Mazza Museum Weekend Conference has begun! A ballet dancer until she was thirty, Robin Preiss Glasser, has spent her entire life expressing her artistic self without words. As the acclaimed illustrator of many books for children, including the beloved Fancy Nancy series, she is still doing just that. In an auditorium crowded with […]
This message isn’t from me. It comes straight from Mo to my computer to you. You aren’t allowed to know what happened here today. Seriously. I’m not allowed to photograph any more. Honestly, he threatened to publicly shame those who attempted a shot. (He didn’t remember I already snapped this one!) I’m not allowed to […]
Isn’t that a mouthful? This evening, artist David Macaulay joined a prestigious list of Medallion recipients which includes Ted Rand, Robert Sabuda, and Paul Zelinsky to name just a few. With great enthusiasm, Dr. Jerry Mallett welcomed before a packed house the British-born, architecturally-trained, RISD instructor who introduced young readers to a fresh perspective in informational picture […]
All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up. ~Pablo Picasso The Mazza Museum International Art from Picture Books not only showcases the work of the world’s finest illustrators in children’s literature, it is also committed to nurturing the artist in every young child. Every year, the walls of the […]
Imagine a place where everyone in the room adores books the way you do. A place where illustrations from children’s books, classic to modern, line the walls, and the chatter around you buzzes with words like “artist,” “create,” and “literature.” Are you dreaming? Probably not. You’re likely in Findlay, Ohio. Now you probably think I’m […]
