Thursday, October 04, 2018

Blog: Magical Art - Works by Garth Williams #LittleGoldenBooks #LittleHouseonthePrairie #childhoodbooks


Recently, I went to an art exhibit for Garth Williams. I didn't know anything about him until I read his bio. Garth Williams did illustrations for Little Golden Books, Little House on the Prairie books, and Charlotte's Web.

Cha-ching! I had read all of the Little House books multiple times when I was a kid, many Little Golden Books, and Charlotte's Web. 

Mr. Williams created works for fifty years. Born in 1912 in New York City to British parents who were also artists, he studied portrait painting and sculpture until World War 2. After, he returned to New York and began to work on Stuart Little by E. B. Webb. And with that, his profession was sealed.

Eighty works later, we can see why his work was so outstanding.

Here's Little House on the Prairie covers: 
 A pen and ink from Charlotte's Web: 
Mr. Williams took a flyer for a new publishing opportunity-colorful picture books in large quantities and set at an affordable price point, making books affordable for all. Mr. Williams liked this opportunity as it gave him the chance to work without cost restrictions on color. He collaborated with Margaret Wise Brown. 


I was entranced by the drawing. The colors were vibrant. How a shade of pink played with another of blue.

Here's other fabulous pix:
















Another great cover is the one for the Whispers of Winter holiday anthology which includes my romantic comedy short story, The Great Fruitcake Bake-off. Find your colorful fun at: 


Amazon      Nook      Kobo

3 comments:

Melissa Keir said...

He was such a great artist. Thanks for sharing it! The cover is very pretty for your new anthology! Best Wishes!

Vicki Batman, sassy writer said...

I wish my pictures show off how incredible his work is. His way with color---awesome.

Thank you! I just said yes! when I saw the cover.

Angela Adams said...

Love those photos! My grandmother -- who gave me my love for reading -- always treated me to A Little Golden Book on her Friday paydays! Thanks for the post!!!