Kathy Donovan and Linda Redding
David Biedrzycki
We sat down with author/illustrator David Biedrzycki after he finished two presentations at Halifax Elementary School. The second graders, their parents, and teachers, all enjoyed learning how David Biedrzycki creates his illustrations and the inspiration behind his latest character Ace Lacewing Bug Detective.
Q. Your presentation has a lot of bells and whistles. What do you do to prepare for your school visits?
A. It's important that I bring new ideas and concepts into my performance, whether I'm talking about writing or creating art. Sometimes I include art I created the night before in my presentations the next day. The computer allows me to do this. It's an awesome tool to illustrate and present with, but if your art and presentations lack substance no matter how many bells and whistles you have it's not going to help. That's why I like to interact with my audience throughout the assembly. I feel it's important to be approachable to the students so they won't be afraid to ask good questions later on. I have about six or seven different presentations I use depending on which grade or grades I speak to. I also do a computer drawing demonstration on Photoshop to show kids how my art is created digitally.
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David Biedrzycki at work. |
Q. The skeleton head was a big hit with the kids. What is it and
tell us about some of the places you have gone and the items you have gathered for research for your illustrations?
Skulls are always good for some ooohs, awhhs and laughs. The one I bring with me is a replica Amazon River Dolphin skull. It was an
essential part of a particular illustration I was working on at one
time. I emphasize to students that I need good reference. I don't
create things out of my head. Good reference makes good art. In the making of Dory Story I made countless trips to Peggotty Beach in Scituate MA to sketch the authors nephew and dory. We took the dory out of the water, built waves around it with sand and I did over fifty sketches of the author’s nephew in the boat. Later I caught a bluefish down on Cape Cod, brought it home and stuck it in my freezer until I needed it as a source for one of my illustrations. I bought a model of a humpback whale that aided me immensely in creating a dramatic spread for the book. I find it very enjoyable going to museums and libraries to do my research. Half the fun of illustrating and writing is learning about your subject beforehand. Researching bugs and beetles led to the creation of Ace Lacewing Bug Detective.
Q. How did you make the leap from commercial artist to illustrating children's books to now being an author?
A. I was in advertising illustration for years and although it paid well, the demands and isolation of working day in and day out in my studio wore me out. About 90% of my clients I never met face to face and they lived all over the country. If I ever passed them on the street I would never have known it. I always wanted to illustrate a children’s book. When author Jerry Pallotta approached me about illustrating one of his books, I jumped at the opportunity. I originally intended to illustrate children’s books to fill in down time between commercial clients, but after illustrating several books and being asked to visit schools all over the country and internationally I was hooked. I find the commercial art business stifling compared to being an author/illustrator. Now my clients are the kids who read my books and getting to meet them is very special.
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character?
I was in the middle of illustrating three different books on bugs, when one night I found a bug crawling next to my graphic tablet. It had transparent wings and a beautiful green color. In a field guide I found out it was a green lacewing. I did some realistic sketches of the bug expecting to include it in one of the books I was working on. Then, for fun, I did a quick drawing of the bug decked out in a trench coat and a fedora. The sketch wasn't that great but I threw it into my scanner and opened it Photoshop. The more I worked on it the more I started to think about the possibilities of "what if?" What if he was a bug detective? What if was walking down the street in a bug city? What would the buildings look like? How would the streets be lit? What would other bugs be doing in the city? I had a character and I had setting. But I didn't have a story. That didn't stop me from showing the sketch to my publisher. They loved him. They asked me if I had a story. I said. "Yes I have a story." I went back home and wrote like crazy.
Q. When you were a young artist did you ever think technology would play such a big part in your illustrations?
A. I never thought I would be illustrating using anything other than a brush, paint and paper. In the early 90's I saw work being done on the computer but it really wasn't the style I wanted for my art. Then a couple of years later someone let me use a graphic tablet hooked up to their computer. Even though it was almost like drawing with a brush or pencil the processors were so slow it took the computer a little while to catch up to the line I was making with the pen on the tablet. I didn't like it. But a year or two later processors got really fast. I gave it another try. That was 1998 and I haven't used paints and brushes since.
Q. What an honor to be invited to visit schools in Guam. What was that trip like?
A. The Guam Council of the International Reading Association sponsored my visit and it was an amazing experience. I never knew how far away Guam actually was until I made the trip. Everyone I met was wonderful; they couldn't do enough for you. I visited schools all over the island and every one of them fed me. They fed me when I got to their school and they fed me when I left. I visited three schools a day and would have six meals before dinner. I gained ten pounds that week. All the schools were decorated by the students to welcome me. I'll keep those fond memories for the rest of my life. Someone from the American school in Japan found out I was visiting Guam and asked if I would consider going to Tokyo after Guam. So I spent a week visiting American and International Schools in Japan the following week. What a blast.
Q. What books written or illustrated by you can we look forward to seeing?
A. Ace Lacewing Bug Detective's second and third books are in the works as is a sequel to "Who Will guide My Sleigh Tonight?” a book that was offered by Scholastic this past November. I have a number of ideas that I've been working on that will be presented to publishers that includes a chapter book I've been writing for over a year. I like to keep busy with several projects at one time.
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A note of thanks for a great presentation
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Kathy Donovan, Reading Consultant, Turning Pages
Kathy@authorassemblies.com
Linda Redding, Library Teacher, Halifax Elementary School
lredding@slrsd.org
Books
written and illustrated by David Biedrzycki:
Ace
Lacewing: Bug Detective
Books by Jerry Pallotta and illustrated by David Biedrzycki
The Beetle Alphabet Book
The Boat Alphabet Book
Dory Story
The Freshwater Alphabet Book
Underwater Counting: Even Number
To learn more about David Biedrzycki visit his website
www.davidbiedrzycki.com