“Pilgrims often journey to the ends of the earth in search of holy ground, only to find that they have never walked on anything else.” Scott Russell Sanders “We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Art
There’s a Place For Us
For a few years I’ve been noticing three notes that play out on some NYC subway lines as the train leaves the station (you hear them on some 2, 4 and 5 lines). A NYT article uncovered what they are. When the subway brakes are engaged, they sing the first three notes of “There’s a… Read more »
Where is the humanity it that?
Someone once asked me in front of a Rothko “But where is the humanity in that?” Representational art, he felt, was more respectful and worshipful of the world and mankind, whereas modern art had turned its back on it. I asked my friend Dan Siedell (author and Presidential Scholar and Art Historian in Residence at… Read more »
my child could do that
A few months ago, I visited MOMA on an unofficial tour led by my friend Dan Siedell (author and Presidential Scholar and Art Historian in Residence at The King’s College, NYC). It was great. He took us to floor 5 where we looked at Cezanne, Matisse and Van Gogh. Then down to floor 4 where… Read more »
Featured Illustrator: Chris Haughton
Chris Haughton is a favorite artist of mine—such a brilliant sense of humor and most of all so very deceptively simple (and believe me, as a picture book writer, I know how extremely hard that is to do…) Behind a “simple picture book” are revision after revision. With How To Be A Baby, for instance,… Read more »
Coloring Poor Doreen
Have you ever seen a fish carrying an umbrella? How about a fish wearing a headscarf? Poor Doreen wasn’t even supposed to be in my book. She just arrived without me inviting her. And took over. (I got the idea for the book when I was out running.) The book I wanted to write was… Read more »
10 Books for Children age 6 to 106 (Pt. 1)
What are your favorite children’s books? People ask me that a lot. It’s a hard question to answer because where do you begin? The best children’s book are, of course, the ones which are nothing of the sort. They are those books which can be enjoyed by a child of any age, from 6 to… Read more »
Instagram of the Week: Neon Signs
Almost exactly to the day, one hundred and sixteen years ago, in a laboratory in London, two British chemists did an experiment that would transform New York City. On June 12, 1898 they discovered neon. From 1920 neon became a fixture in the city. Visible even in daylight, people would stop and stare at the… Read more »
Primary History: WWII Lessons for Children (Wartime Posters)
I’m not sure how long it’s been around, but this website by the BBC is an absolute treasure. The goal of the website is to give children a way to explore and learn about WWII online. While all of the resources are fascinating, I wanted to specifically highlight some of the posters that were used… Read more »