On July 24, 1937, a committee of the American Library Association met in NYC to make plans for an annual award to be given to illustrators of children’s books. Nearly a decade before, librarians had created the Newbery award to honor the authors of children’s books. It was now time, the ALA believed, to also honor illustrators. This new award would be called the Caldecott medal named for Randolph Caldecott.
In an essay in the August 11 issue of the NYT’s Book Review section, Leonard S. Marcus writes about Caldecott. Marcus is the author of a new book “Randolph Caldecott: The Man Who Could Not Stop Drawing.” This is a JLG selection, which we will soon be receiving.
Caldecott is credited with being the creator of the modern picture book. He was a self-taught artist who was born in the English Midlands in 1846. At the age of 15, his father got him a job at a bank, but Caldecott couldn’t stop doodling. At the age of 26, he moved to London to continue his efforts as a freelance illustrator. His work began to appear in various English newspapers and magazines. Eventually he was offered the opportunity to create a series of high quality children’s picture books.
His illustrations were spare and he rejected the “fustiness” of his fellow Victorian artists. Marcus believes that “virtually every trick of the picture book artist’s trade may be found somewhere in Caldecott’s 16 little books.”
This essay helped me get to know the man whose craft has inspired children’s book illustrators for more than 100 years.