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Reading the room
Illustrators adorn public library with murals
By Bill Roundy
Brooklyn Paper
They’re really up against the wall !
A series of seven colorful murals
celebrating the power of books now
decorates the children’s section of Brooklyn’s
biggest reading room. The Brooklyn
Public Library unveiled the images,
which are spread along one wall of the
Youth Wing of its Central Library, at a
celebration on Oct. 7. Adding art to the
library was a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity,
said one of the creators.
“I never would have dreamed that I
could contribute in this way to this borough
that I love so much,” said Stephen
Savage, a 25-year Brooklyn resident and
illustrator of the children’s book “Polar
Bear Night.”
The art project began as a way to
liven up the plain white walls of the library’s
Youth Wing with framed prints,
but soon snowballed into a mural project
involving seven acclaimed children’s
book illustrators with ties to the library
system.
The artists worked together to create
a unifying theme for the seven murals,
said the Brooklyn illustrator who also
art directed the project.
“What we came up with was ‘What
happens to a book when it leaves the library?’
” said Sophie Blackall, artist of
the “Ivy and Bean” series and a twotime
winner of the Caldecott Medal.
“The book goes out into the community,
and it gets read in treetops, and on the
subway — and ‘Where does the book
takes you?’ — to imaginary places and
to dreamscapes.”
The murals start with Savage’s image
of a flying saucer hovering over
the Central Branch, lifting a red book
with a tractor beam. Other murals show
the book traveling around the world,
street scenes of Brooklyn, imaginary
creatures, and finally, children reading
while floating above the Earth.
Repeating motifs across the murals
include that spaceship, a mother pushing
a stroller, butterflies, and the golden
creatures that adorn the front gates of
the Central Branch Library.
Working with the library was a way of
repaying a debt, said Blackall, an Australian
native.
“I would do almost anything — almost
—for the library,” she said. “The
library and I go back a long way. About
20 years ago I moved to this country,
On the shelf: Award-winning children’s book illustrator Sophie Blackall
sits in front of her mural at the Brooklyn Public Library.
not knowing a soul, in the dead of winter,
and my infant son learned to walk
in the Youth Wing. The library opened
its doors to us. It was warm, it was free,
and we read our way through the stacks,
and along the way, I took notes on how
to make a picture book.”
Other mural artists were Christopher
Myers, Javaka Steptoe, Paul Zelinsky,
Selina Alko, and Yuyi Morales.
Central Library Youth Wing 10
Grand Army Plaza at Eastern Parkway
in Prospect Heights, (718) 230–2100,
www.bklynlibrary.org. Open Mon–
Thu, 9 am–9 pm; Fri, Sat, 9 am–6 pm;
Sun, 1–5 pm. Free.
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