Going back to my all time favorite book, the Little Prince, it’s not only the message that impressed me- Antoine de St Exupery wrote and illustrated his book, giving it a charming quality. He is primarily a writer, so his style is genuinely naïve, but it‘s also carefully drawn, with some images more detailed than others (the baobab tree for example). The character of the little Prince isn’t entirely consistent throughout the book, but he always has enough of the same traits to identify him as the same person.
One of my favorite images from the whole book is the blob that at first appears to be a hat. The prince uses this image as a test to see if a grown up is still imaginative because in reality, his drawing is a boa constrictor eating an elephant, but it’s just the external view. I love this play on perception and I’ve even considered getting this outline as a tattoo.
Obviously, I’m drawn to simple, line based images, judging by my previous posts. This one is no exception, with its inked lines and light watercolor washes. Most of the rather flat images are done with a limited color palette, which adds to the whimsical nature of the story. The more detailed pictures have a greater sense of depth and more variety in color for a more realistic feel. Overall, the expressive lines and simplistic figures play well with the emotional subject of the book.
I remember reading this book when I was little. It is interesting to see the cute drawings from this story. Although they are simple, they are expressive and fit well with the children's story.
ReplyDelete