Award-winning children’s book illustrations…
Award-winning children’s book illustrations from UF’s Mazza Museum being shown for first time in Toledo Museum of Art exhibition.
By Shauna Shepler
Children’s book illustrations from the University of Findlay’s Mazza Museum are currently being shown in an exhibition at the Toledo Museum of Art. Storybook Stars features 120 award-winning illustrations from Maurice Sendak (b: 1928; Where the Wild Things Are), Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904-1991; the Dr. Seuss series), Mo Willems (b: 1968; Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale), Eric Carle (b: 1929; The Very Hungry Caterpillar), Arnold Lobel (1933-1987; the Frog and Toad series), and others.
The exhibit takes visitors into the delightful, enchanting worlds of characters loved by generations of readers. The illustrations show the quick sketches of the author/ illustrator’s initial idea for a story to the completed illustrations as they were reproduced in the published books. Interestingly, the sketches, storyboards, and “book dummies” (which divide color images into separate plates) were created in expected (with ink, watercolor paint, or pencil) and unexpected (with acrylic paint, by wood cutting, or in collage form) ways. Each illustration either inspired its accompanying text, or was inspired by the already existing text in the books. Either way, the artists strove to unify their illustrations and the text of the books by choosing the technique and style that would best convey the whole book’s meaning and mood. Each illustration interpreted, described, or decorated the books’ text, or told their own stories. Storybook Stars is the first exhibition in the Mazza Museum’s 27-year history to be shown at TMA. Although original Mazza works have been exhibited in the past 15 years at other prestigious museums nationwide, Mazza director Ben Sapp says staff changes at TMA in the last decade have kept the two internationally recognized institutions from collaborating.
“We have been talking with the Toledo Museum of Art for many years about having an exhibit there,” 
says Sapp. “It is a great feeling to have the Mazza Museum’s original works of art on display at TMA. We recognize that TMA is one of the top art museums of its size in the country. Many people say the same about the Mazza Museum. Therefore, we are honored for the collaboration between the two institutions.” Sapp says the Mazza Museum chose illustrations for the Storybook Stars exhibit that have been honored with some of the most prestigious awards in children’s literature. These awards include the Caldecott and Newberry Medals, the Corretta Scott King Award, and the Theodore Seuss Geisel Award.
Sapp says he hopes the success of Storybook Stars will lead to many future exhibitions of works from the Mazza collection at the Toledo Museum of Art. The exhibit is being shown free of charge to the public in TMA’s Works on Paper Galleries now through Jan. 31, 2010. For more information, contact the Toledo Museum of Art at (419) 255-8000, or go to www.toledomuseum.org.
