EVERYWHERE BEAUTY IS HARLEM: A Visual Tribute to Photographer Roy DeCarava

Calkins Creek, 2023
Imprint of ASTRA BOOKS

I have several friends whose full, professional lives have nevertheless led them to become remarkable photographers, unrelated to their main careers. Their specialties range from capturing planned events, to patient wildlife photos, to those who combine candid and intentional photo captures with observed/gathered artifacts to form creative collages with emotional depth. I admire and appreciate the "eye" and skills of each of these. The same is true for this photographer I never met.

EVERYWHERE BEAUTY IS HARLEM: The Vision of Photographer Roy DeCarava is the award-winning recent picture book profile of a twentieth century master of the camera, Roy DeCavara, who also completed a full day's employment of one sort or another. Working day jobs offered other times and opportunities to drop a roll of film in his camera, then follow his eye and heart, capturing the beauty of everyday life in his home, Harlem. The text relies on an artful blend of minimal but informative text by author Gary Golio, blended with inspiring excerpts from DeCavara's writings and interviews. Each quotation is sourced in back matter, but they are so seamlessly blended as to lend a sense of co-authoring this gloriously illustrated biographic homage to a brilliant artist. DeCavara's works revealed not just his skill with the techniques of using black and white film to isolate candid images, but also his talented eye for the moment, the magic, of life. He saw what anyone could, but he showed us what we were missing.The opening text is one of those DeCavara quotations that sets the tone, literally, with this:

"It doesn't have to be pretty to be true,

but if it's true it's beautiful.

Truth is beautiful."

The DeCavara  body of work is primarily black and white, emphasizing light and shadow, rarely using a flash. His remarkable images were often primarily dark with the brilliance of situational, minimal light finding its/his target. His approach elevates the magic, the beauty of a subject to impressive heights. Work by gifted and multi-awarded "artistrator" E. B. Lewis  is also often dense and dark in background with intentional and stunning lighting lending luminous attention to the heart of each scene. In this case his approach enlivens iconic Harlem locations and frames experiences as if to animate those original moments from the photographs for which the Harlem photographer is best known.

In times when film is unnecessary and rarely used, when cameras of excellent quality are in the palms mod so many hands, His concluding quotation, from back pages, urges us to find what we love in every day life and celebrate it in the moment:

"Unexpected treasures are waiting to be seen,

if you just take the time to look."

A Beautiful Picture Book Wondering_ What is Beautiful?

Greystone Kids, 2021

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? Of course. That is as it should be. This gorgeous new picture book makes that point clearly in an elegantly quiet and reflective way. HOW BEAUTIFUL is written by Antonella Capetti and illustrated by Melissa Castrillon. Check out an intensive interview with the illustrator, including amazing interiors, HERE.

Story first, though, since this kid-friendly and seemingly simple narrative preceded the remarkable and inspired art on the cover and throughout each spread that is worthy of close examination. 

Caterpillar is the star, but begins as a very contented, grace-filled being, one who finds that each leaf and munch is satisfying and fulfilling. Its life is enough. Until... a hand lifts caterpillar on a twig, admires it, and comments, "How beautiful!" before returning it gently to the forest floor.

And thus, a quest is launched, but one with both a gentle and mythic quality, to determine "What is Beautiful?" An antagonist arises, reacting to  each repetition of the question to forest-mates. It's an increasingly annoying blackbird who denies the claims of beauty in their responses. He challenges their choices, calling them useful, or comfortable, or otherwise functional but NOT beautiful. Until blackbird ultimately spies an empty tin can, which is his choice as beautiful. At that point, catepillar has learned enough to sense that blackbird's choice is NOT beautiful. Exhausted from following a seemingly failed quest, caterpillar and the others settle to sleep, turning their eyes to the sky. 

There, in the night sky, beauty reveals itself to them, leaving no room for debate: the full moon shows its face. 

For anyone who has read or heard that "quiet stories" in picture books will not find a market, here is the proof that the RIGHT story works, even if it is a quiet one.

This elegantly simple narrative is written by an Italian author, illustrated by a British artist, and released by a Canadian publisher. The art provides suitably universal scenes and characters for this detailed interpretation, with characters assuming a sort of "modern dance" grace within the scenes. the style evokes a sort of Renaissance intricacy and elegance while shaping each character in a modern interpretation that hints at powerful similarities within their differences. 

This oversized, intricate, and intriguing art uses saturated jewel tones with intentional white insertions. The sturdy matte papers allow the story and art to progress without need for gloss or shimmer. I'm not the only one who has fallen into the undeniable beauty of these scenes. Check out  Kirkus Review, HERE. Observations by others in-the-know about such things offer plenty of buzz that this may well be among finalists and winners of 2021 awards for illustration and perhaps for story. 

I received a copy of this lovely book with no expectation of a reveiw from GREYSTONE KIDS, a publisher of picture books that have  impressed me objectively, and captured my heart as well. If this publisher is new to you, I hope you'll click their name above and take time to consider the titles they've been producing. Along with offering an expanded platform for underrepresented voices, visions, and stories, they also embrace stories that stretch the more familiar structures often expected by picture book readers and buyers.