Introduction

Illustrators of children’s literature have the unique opportunity of utilizing their young readers’ unjaded sense of imagination and keen sense of observation to help convey the story through visual arts. The pacing, the colors, the mood, the materials and the technique as a whole must be perfectly balanced in order to bring the story to life for just the right age, for just the right reader. This is an incredible challenge, one that deserves the utmost respect. Yet it took several decades after the commencement of mass marketing for children’s picture books, their illustrators and their authors to begin receiving the respect they deserved. Most adult readers, be they in the publishing industry, the education sector or even parents, saw such stories and illustrations as menial and undeserving of attention. In 1980, Dilys Evans, an expert in the fields of publishing and art, sought to “create an awareness that children’s book illustration was a unique form of fine art that was worthy of celebration and recognition” (2008, p. 1). This movement took on a life of its own, eventually helping the public at large to see children’s book illustrations as fine art. 

Left: Image from Ranpunzel by Paul O. Zelinsky; Right: Image created by Richard Scarry

            Richard Scarry and Paul O. Zelinsky are just two of thousands of talented illustrators who have created such fine art and poured their souls into bringing stories off the page and into the imaginations of readers. As they each grew into their professions, using their backgrounds and experiences to build a foundation from which to create, they developed artistic philosophies that were on opposite ends of the spectrum from each other. Despite their difference in philosophies and style, they both believed whole-heartedly in the power of illustration to educate, to entertain and to cultivate an unending love of literature.