I enjoy reading, and I especially enjoy a well illustrated book. I have a collection of children's and young adult fiction, and I have to admit that I spent almost as much time looking at the illustrations as I do reading the text.
 
I've done some illustration over the years, and I admire the works that speak to attention to detail and embody a handmade quality. I love origami and paper sculpture art. I do like collage. The piece at right is an example of a collage illustration.
 
The Crow and the Pitcher
This piece illustrated the Aesop's fable of the same name. The wise crow drops pebbles into the pitcher until the water level rises enough got him to drink. When thinking about this assignment, I wanted to create an image that had depth and texture. I decided to use fabric and paper to build the image. The crow is made of black satin and cotton, with a metallic fabric for extra depth. The pitcher is created with handmade Japanese paper, treated to present added texture.
 
The image shows the three parts of the story, the crow finding the almost empty pitcher, the pebbles being dropped in, and finally the crow being able to quench his thirst.
 
Because the fabrics used to create the crow were so luxurious, I was anxious that the last image present the crow as a little bedraggled. While the crow may be unkempt, his shape, form and color together create a beautiful image.


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