Seeing Nature With My Brush: The Art of Jerry Pinkney

Jerry Pinkney has illustrated over 100 children’s books, including classics like The Tortoise and the Hare, The Lion and the Mouse, and Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. A recipient of the Caldecott Medal, five New York Times “Best Illustrated Books” honors, and five Coretta Scott King Awards, Jerry’s work engages readers with rich drawings and paintings of people, animals, and environments. Jerry has used several of Teatown’s animal ambassadors as models for his illustrations!

Come learn about Jerry’s approach to connecting people to nature through illustration and storytelling.

Programs require pre-registration. Online registration available until 24 hours before the event. If online registration is not available, call (914) 762-2912 x110 to register.

“A sense of community has always been important to me, and I want that to be reflected in my art. When I speak of community, I am not only talking about the immediate world around me, but also legacy. I am always searching for projects that connect with my culture and the experience of being Black in America.

I love the act of making marks on paper, and seeing those marks develop into a picture. How rewarding it is to just sit, observe, and paint! But I am a storyteller at heart, which is why I was drawn to picture books. Each project begins with the question, “Is this story worth telling? Is the manuscript an interesting read? Is it surprising and challenging? Will I, in the process of making pictures, learn something new?” With these questions answered, I let the text speak to me. The style in which a story is written will offer me clues and give direction.

When I am working for children, I aim for clarity with a direct correlation between text and art, but I still illustrate stories not as I imagine a child sees them, but how I see them. My work is my life’s vocation, yet it is also the way I get to speak about interests and passions, the immediacy of drawing and my love of painting. What drives my narratives is the search for order, symmetry, beauty and emotion. I want to lead the viewer into my imagination—a world that exists inside these pictures. I have illustrated over a hundred children’s books, and my wish for each one is that all ages will be able to find something that touches them in some way.”