Beatrix Potter has been one of my favorite illustrators and authors ever since I was little. I’m sure this is the case for many people, because Potter is one of the best selling children’s authors of all time.
I like Potter’s work because of its simplicity, and the fact that she stays true to the animals’ forms while giving them little characteristics such as clothing, or even the posture the animal is in, to make them distinctive. The stories are also fascinating, being unique enough to catch a child’s interest, yet simple enough for the child to understand.
Upon seeing the film “Miss Potter”, I became interested in Potter’s life, and began to read up on her. She was not only revolutionary in her children’s books, but also in the fact that she saved farms from being bought and built on. She was an avid lover of nature and even donated her estate to the National Trust, as well as her original illustrations. I have great respect for who Potter was as a person, as well as an illustrator.
I was always a firm believer that it takes a special kind of talent to create truly great work for children, and that only select few are afforded that level of genius. The main mistake lesser authors constantly make is turning art for children into this painfully primitive sugary syrup that their audience will look at with disgust, once they are a little older.
ReplyDeleteThis is a mistake Beatrix Potter would NEVER EVER make. Yes her drawings don't have the complexity of the Garden of Earthly Delights, and yes it is all very warm and fuzzy, but once you're older you turn back to them and take the same comfort and pleasure you experienced when you were small.
I've seen her work before and its beautiful. It's simple, yet it shows a lot of time being spent with the art as well as the story. I agree with Vadim, a lot of children's illustrators get too saccrine, but she stays away from it completely.
ReplyDeleteAs a child, I was in love with Beatrix Potter's work. I suppose that I still am. There's a softness and tranquility to her work that allows you into the worlds she creates for her characters quite peacefully. It all feels a bit nostalgic, and I feel as though it still would even if I hadn't known of her work previously.
ReplyDeletePotter's work is also adorable. I'm surprised no one has mentioned such an obvious, and yes, important aspect of the appeal of her work. It takes a certain sensibility and skill to make anthropomorphic animals genuinely appealing as opposed to frightening or ugly.
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