Meet FLORINE STETTHEIMER... Artist Ahead of Her Time

Holiday House/NEAL PORTER BOOKS
2024

One artist ahead of her time was Florine Stettheimer, but then many artists are ahead of their times. I found, though, that this particular artist, previously unknown to me (despite my effort to be reasonably informed about artists of the twentieth century), was fascinating. A PARTY FOR FLORINE: FLORINE STETTHEIMER AND ME is the creation of another artist, author/illustrator Yevgenia Nayberg. 

The illustration style and the first person narrator are both an homage to Stettheimer and a reflection  of Nayberg's own artistic style. 

A short note in back reveals that even though an  accomplished and acclaimed artist such as she is, Nayberg found that Florine was a new experience and one she welcomed. 

In the text, a young girl sees a face, an image very much like herself, in a self-portrait by Stettheimer. The girl and the subject in the self-portrait were both artists, and the young observer commits to learning more. That storyline reveals Stettheimer's life story as shared within the remaining narration. 

Florine's life was one of means, one of intellectual pursuits, one surrounded by other remarkable women and intellectual discussions. When women were bound into corsets and equally so by social expectations and even demands, Florine had the luxury of expressing herself freely. She did so in her clothing choices and activities. Her art is expressionist in that there is realism in many elements and colors, but proportion, angle, position, and subject matter all reflect an almost dreamlike quality to her work. 

When I explored Nayberg's body of work, I detected many parallels in style, color, and perspective between their styles. That, too, must have been a bit of a startling recognition to the picture book creator. I particularly enjoyed learning in the author note that this unexpected introduction came to the artist as an adult, but the the story is well-crafted around the emotional journey of a young girl observer, who compares Florine's liberated, self-affirming life to her own young misery on gray rainy days and with nothing "exciting" happening to her. The line was never written but several of the girl's expressions called to mind a refrain any parent will recognize... "I'm bored!"

In fact, though, this narrator comes to realize her own agency, her ability to see the world around her through whatever lens invites creativity and joy and delight. Stettheimer proactively rejected the directives in her expensive art instructions from prestigious institutions and opted to interpret a recto-linear world with curves and tilts and graceful exaggeration. This is evident in examples you can view online. This recognition by the girl of her  own power removes the oppressive rainy filters and ignites joy. 

As much as this might feel like an adult-centric biography, the young narrator's emotional journey makes it well-suited to young readers, too. In fact, very young "artists" often ignore efforts to reproduce what they "see" on a page in favor of colorful, movement-infused, joyful art. Perhaps Florine's seemingly sophisticated talent was really her openness to expressing the world without rules, as children so often do. 

I urge you to take a look at this lovely new offering to meet Florine for yourselves. Please note that front and back endpapers reproduce the four pieces from her CATHEDRAL OF NEW YORK series, one she was working on until a few weeks before her death. The contagious joy they reveal invite you to join her at the party that was her life.

Another Look AT JOY!

Here's a brief post with a review to follow-up my previous post about summer fun, currently and in "the good old days", as recalled by Jacqueline Woodson. In that post I praise the recent THE WORLD BELONGED TO US and, slightly older, THE HULA-HOOPIN' QUEEN. Within those books and my notes are celebrations of PLAY and JOY. The circumstances in each are location- and time-specific, with both, in fact, set in densely urban city streets. The images are universal while  anchored in those specifics. Text and images effectively speak to Black-American audiences, and yet the aspirations and challenges apply to ANY child in any culture, (at least to those  living with the human right to play and grow naturally, not dealing with trauma, war, poverty and other disruptions in development.)

Candlewick, 2022

Follow those titles with an even MORE universal, affirming, and necessary picture book. This one presents illustrations and authors,  text to inspire and demonstrate the potential of every child, but specifically a girl child. In fact, a Black girl child. BLACK GIRL RISING is written by Brynne Barnes and illustrated by Tatyana Fazlalizadeh.

From the glowing cover art and expression, a lyrical, rhyming text embeds single name references to Black female icons in many fields. Lines issue challenges to the "girl" being addressed. A half-mocking voice mirrors phrasing that would have been used across centuries, confrontations directly issued to intimidate and belittle anyone who was getting "uppity", acting as if they were/might be talented, capable, beautiful, and in so many ways valuable! A sort of "Who do you think you are?" attack. As the names roll across the pages, so do the images, the every-Black-girl possibilities, including a variety of skin and hair tones and types, features, body shapes, and cultural dress. Expressions, too, are wide-ranging, not simply dreamy-eyed and positive. The illustrations and color pallet provide effective showcases for these variations, including the less-often seen images of "blue-purple, black-ruby-sapphire tones". 

Throughout all stanzas and double-page spreads there is strength, rhythm, and musicality that uplift while firmly anchoring the characters in sure-footed confidence. Various lines also blend Black-culture vocabulary in powerful patterns and unexpected ways:

"from your skin, your lips, your freckles, you're fade,

your fro, your naps, your dreads, your braids,

your  blowout, your kinks, your twists, your waves, 

your coils, so free and unafraid.

Who gave you a CROWN so wonderfully made?"

As I so often say, (many) picture books will find purpose and appeal across a wide range of ages. This would make an ideal gift book for a young girl about to enter school, or having a recital or performance of some kind, celebrating a landmark birthday, or even graduating. Just imagine the many generations of Black youth who received the time-honored SEUSS book for graduation instead of this. It's about time, I say. As for upper grade literature classes, use this to identify the remarkable array of authors mentioned and locate the words or references to iconic lines or titles or themes. For this lovely picture book my only suggestion would have been to provide that reference list in a single page back matter, citing full names and titles referenced

Please check it out and share it. And PLEASE DO not think it is "only" for Black audiences. 

Please. All children need diverse books, and diverse images about others. 

Folk Tales and Facts: Marvelous Cornelius (One that got away)

Updating this with a link to one of my earliest posts, explaining why Martin Luther King, Jr is a personal hero of mine. Hope you'll read it here.

Awards season for books for young readers increases in intensity at this time of year. I'm truly a fan of the NERDY BOOK CLUB blog and its decision to name all top contenders as "WINNERS" of their self-named "Nerdies" rather than finalists or honorees or also-rans. Anyone who reads and uses books with others, especially with young readers, knows that as soon as a single "winner" is named, there's a ripple effect of heartache among those whose favorite title just missed the cut. 

Participating as a first round panelist for the Cybils Awards this year in the fiction picture book category was an exciting, demanding, positive experience and one I'd love to repeat in some future year. Narrowing the worthy contenders to seven finalists was far from easy, but was actually less stressful than if I had to name that list myself. I know that the titles we ultimately agreed to send forward (here)  represent a wide range of experienced points of view, a much more fair approach than placing that burden on a single set of shoulders.

One interesting complication, though, had to do with categorizing and defining books. Thankfully, there's a separate set of administrators who determine if books are considered fiction or non-fiction, picture books or early readers or graphic novels, and so on. Once they were in our hands we judged them as fiction. A few raised my eyebrows, appearing to be hybrids of more than one category. Still, that's the way of publishing these days, and I believe we're better off for it when books can be "crossovers", as in music becoming hits in both pop and country genres. Perhaps that genre-bending factor explains why this title wasn't mentioned among the amazing ALA Youth Media Awards (view here).

Chronicle Books, 2015

 

I'm proud to raise my voice in praise of a book that didn't make the Cybils Fiction Picture Book finalists list, in part because it presented some of those confusions: MARVELOUS CORNELIUS: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans. Written by Phil Bildner and illustrated by John Parra, it's a fictionalized version of an actual resident of New Orleans, a man who spent his life elevating his job as a sanitation worker into a shining inspiration.My second read (because I was still wowed by the quality of the book after the first read) made me wonder if it was or wasn't fiction. I knew it was "based on" a real man. 

The third time through I finally read the back matter. I'm a huge fan of back matter, but tried not too read too early so that the "author's insight" wouldn't shape my reactions in judging the work on its own merits. Too many kids/teachers don't bother with the back content and it shouldn't be exclusively the reason for choosing a book kids will love. However, if it made it into the book it provides a rare opportunity to get a message from the author aimed directly at the reader, almost as a colleague or partner.

In this case, it confirmed what I was thinking, which is that this is NOT biographical, any more that John Henry (which is based on an actual character) is biographical/nonfiction. Cornelius worked in the French Quarter, a place steeped in legendary stories of its own. This book clearly incorporates things that are exaggerated, uses the language and patterns of tall tales, and absolutely captures the larger-than-life quality of a legendary hero in text and image. It represents that amazing ability to appeal to older readers and adults yet the youngest adore its rhythmic, lyrical text, enhanced with repetitions and refrains. It offers delights for the ears and eyes, expanding the action and language with its exaggerated, kid-friendly folk-art illustration style.

This book bounces and  sings, capturing a city and culture as if they are characters. Scenes shift throughout, from the earliest pages where the grittiness is transformed to sparkling and appealing by the spirit (and hard work) of Cornelius. While the pastel and filagreed structures fill the background, mid-ground citizens reflect the vibrant impact of Cornelius and his energetic joy.
Katrina not only flattens the city, it nearly destroys the spirit of those residents. Eventually, the overwhelming destruction of nature's force is countered by even stronger determination, binding and building a community, inspired by the spirit of Cornelius.
Beyond all that, it offers connections to curriculum- geography, careers, infrastructures, the role of government, weather, community action, goal-setting, character development, and more. Young writers can experiment with turning their own local or pop heroes into mythical status using the simple advice offered in Bildner's notes at the back. 
This book incorporates excellent design features, too, with iconography of New Orleans on the end papers, shifting perspectives and proportions throughout, and an introductory quotation by Dr. Martin Luther King, Junior. Before the first word about Cornelius there is a full page spread sharing a quotation by MLK, Jr. about the dignity of work. It's as if he had lived to know Cornelius.  His quote comes from his dealings with the sanitation workers strike, an active stance that resulted in his assassination. 

"All the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 

Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well."

As did Cornelius.

Harcourt Brace & Co.
August, 2015

A graphic nonfiction portrayal of the actual events surrounding Hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans area was written and illustrated by DON BROWN: DROWNED CITY: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans. It is undeniably non-fiction and is the well-deserved winner of the NCTE Orbis Pictus award in that category. 

Pair this with Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans to make history come alive, to bring that time and place "up close and personal" in a very real sense.