From: Rudine Sims Bishop <bishop.77>
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 1998 11:04:21 -0500

Thanks, Linnea, for that detailed appreciation of Javaka's artwork in his first picture book. It is truly a remarkable achievement, and I was delighted to see it so honored.

Thought CCBCers might like to know that in the newest (March/Arpil?) issue of Horn Book I have a piece on Javaka and Chris Myers, illustrator of Harlem. I had telephone conversations with both of them for that piece, which focuses on their perspectives on their books and the idea of their following in their father's paths, rather than on reviews of the books themselves. Both of them are charming young men. Javaka is a man of relatively few words; although he is quite personable, he tends to let his art speak for him and for itself. Chris on the other hand, is quite out-going and can talk up a storm.

I was fascinated by the fact that Chris, Javaka, and Nina Crews -- all living in Brooklyn, all offspring of famous writers and/or artists, all used collage as their chosen medium for their first picturebooks. Chris had an answer--this is not an exact quote; I don't have it in front of me, but--collage, he said, is one of the central metaphors of the African diaspora. And then he went on to expand on that idea, relating it to jazz, blues, quilting, etc. I was impressed!



Rudine Sims Bishop
Received on Sat 28 Feb 1998 10:04:21 AM CST