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The Year Of The Perfect Christmas Tree by Gloria Houston and Barbara Cooney
“The Year Of The Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story” (1988) is a picture book written by Dr Gloria Houston, illustrated by Barbara Cooney (1917-2000). You’ll soon realise this picture book is longer than almost all contemporary picture books, which are overwhelmingly pitched at pre-schooler length. This one is an excellent example of a ‘picture…
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Ships In Dry Dock and Harbour In Art And Illustration
Below is a collection of ships… but these ones aren’t at sea. They’re on the dock getting built, or fixed. They’re anchored in a harbour, or about to be. This emphasises their size.
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The Blue Devils of Blue River Avenue by Poe Ballantine
“The Blue Devils of Blue River Avenue by Poe Ballantine is included in The Best American Short Stories 1998. It kick started the author’s career, leading to a book contract. (Poe Ballantine is a great penname, don’t you think?) Australia’s Richard Fidler interviewed Poe in 2014 when he was here in Australia for the Byron…
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Bathroom As Horror: Here There Be Tygers by Stephen King
Toilets are inherently scary. This holds true across cultures, even though different cultures (and even genders) experience public toilets differently. Below I take a look at a short horror story by Stephen King with a few examples of toilet horror by other authors, in which the public bathroom is utilised for storytelling purposes as a…
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Miracle Polish by Steven Millhauser Short Story Analysis
“Miracle Polish” is a (possibly) fabulist short story by American author Steven Millhauser, published in the print edition of the November 14, 2011 issue of The New Yorker. More recently, Stuart Dybek joined Deborah Treisman on The New Yorker podcast to read and discuss this story. This short story is a great example of: We…
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Balloons and Bubbles in Art and Illustration
These illustrations show how important balloons are to childhood. Next, bubbles — a variation on the balloon.
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Hunting Dogs In Art and Illustration
These hunting dogs are mostly from 20th century magazines and show the vital role dogs have played in tracking and catching game.
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Illustrations Of The Forest At Night
Some of my favourite paintings and illustrations of the forest at night.
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Table Scenes in Illustration and Composition
Table scenes are notoriously difficult to film in TV and movies. Live action presents its own challenges, but static images of characters around tables aren’t exactly easy, either.
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Catching Fish In Art And Illustration
Illustrations of people out fishing. But sometimes you get what you don’t expect.
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Illustrating Underwater Scenes
Although blue is the first colour that comes to mind when we think ‘underwater’, the range of hue available to illustrators is wider than that. Here are some examples.
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Painting The Haze Of Hot Summer Days
How to convey a hot and hazy day in art and illustration?
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A Sock Is A Pocket For Your Toes by Liz Garton Scanlon and Robin Preiss Glasser Analysis
A Sock Is A Pocket For Your Toes (2004) is a picture book by Liz Garton Scanlon and Robin Preiss Glasser, published by HarperCollins. A cave is a pocket for a bear,a breath is a pocket full of air.A hat is a pocket for your hair,and a seat is a pocket called a chair… A Sock…
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Fruit, Flower and Vegetable Picking in Art and Illustration
Here’s a collection of people picking fruit. Most of the people picking fruit are women, a metaphorically gendered activity (if not an actual one?) Images of women picking fruit appeals to our fantasies of abundance and self-sufficiency. Many of these works are brightly coloured and cosy.
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Illustrations of Art Studios
Sometimes artists don’t need to travel far to find inspiration for their work.