Andrew Glass has written and illustrated many
fabulous books for children- including:
The Wish Giver: Three Tales of Coven Tree
Soap Soap Don't Forget the Soap!
Ananse's Feast: An Ashanti Tale
Easy Work: An Old Tale
The Tale of Willie Monroe
Monster Manners
The Bourbon Street Musicians
Cajun Through and Through
The Wondrous Whirligig: The Wright Brothers First Flying Machine
Sketches from a Spy Tree
Here's what reviewers have to say about Andrew Glass' art for Sketches from a Spy Tree:
"Glass's remarkable watercolors, sketches, photographs, and collages bring
Anne Marie's experiences to life. With each turn of the page, readers encounter
delightfully energized illustrations that complement the subject and mood of
each poem well. Similar in tone and subject to Vera B. Williams's Amber Was
Brave, Essie Was Smart (Greenwillow, 2001), this book would be a valuable
addition to most collections."
-Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
"Glass's multimedia illustrations, which are executed in paint, photo- and cut-paper collage and pencil, are as varied as Anne Marie's subjects and her very natural emotions." - Kirkus Reviews
"Glass's remarkable watercolors, sketches, photographs, and collages bring Anne Marie's experiences to life. With each turn of the page, readers encounter delightfully energized illustrations that complement the subject and mood of each poem well. " - School Library Journal
"At times Glass uses photographs and photo collage in the artwork in an
unusually fresh approach to illustration, but it's his deft draftsmanship and
creative use of color that give the pictures their staying power. Many of the
illustrations seem to glow with infused, colored light that energizes the
scenes, while a few pencil sketches bring a scene to life in gray and white. The
book uses free verse and freewheeling art with distinction."
Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
I had the great opportunity to interview Mr. Glass about illustrating my book! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did:
The art for SPY TREE is a significant departure from your previous books. Can you explain how this came about?
SPY TREE offered me the opportunity to try drawing with Anne Marie's hand or to think, what kind of collage would she make to illustrate this particular poem? So i kind of mixed my way of drawing with what I imagined hers might be to make a different sort of illustration. Next I'd like to try seeing through a character's eyes and drawing what they see.
What advice do you have for young people who would like to become artists or children's book illustrators?
Look at pictures, all sorts of pictures and draw, draw, draw. Actually i think of drawing as anything you do to make a picture, using a pencil, a brush, paper and glue or you r elbow dipped in butter. Drawing is like thinking out loud.
Do you intuitively know which images you'll create when reading a piece or do you have to experiment until you find the one you want?
First I know intuitively so I draw something right away. Then I draw it again and again and again......
Is there as much revision in making the art of a book as there is in the writing?
For me making pictures is very much like writing. You have to be very persistent and try not to think about being finished or you will go a little or a lot crazy.
What are you working on next?
I just finished, The Tortoise and the Hare Race Again, by Dan Birnstien to be published by Holiday House in the Spring of 2006. Meanwhile I'm looking inward and outward for some new ideas and trying to find ends to some beginnings, and vice versa, for stories I've had for a while. Mostly I'm keeping an eye (both eyes) on my new daughter, Katherine Elvira.
Congratulations Andrew on creating such gorgeous artwork for SPY TREE and for all your terrific reviews! Thanks for your time on the interview- can't wait to see your new book!