Attempting Some Art Talk

This is kind of random, but I came across this book from my childhood today. I had bought my son a McCloskey collection book before he was born, and thought there was something very familiar about the style of illustrations, so I finally got around to googling the author and found this book I loved so much.

It was such a neat book with a real flavor of Americana from the 1940's (I think?).

Anyway, a point I want to make is this book and its illustrations really impacted the way I think about art and design. I even took up cartooning when I was a kid because I loved the look of these illustrations. I really liked the old-fashioned cartoon art.

I am not an artist by any means, but the things that inspire me to choose certain fabrics are built from past experiences with art. I love McCloskey's illustrations because they are very simple and cartoonish, yet realistic at the same time.  I love that sort of look in the fabrics I choose. This blogger writes exactly what I am trying to say about his art:

"What I love most about McCloskey’s work is how expressive and fluid his drawings are. They straddle the line between lifelike interpretations and actual cartoons and are so utterly clean, despite depicting complex scenes."

- Inkypenline.wordpress.com

I have always LOVED printmaking and screenprinting art. His drawings remind me of those mediums. I did a little printmaking after college and enjoyed it very much. I love black on white, bold and simple representations of nature, especially. Again, these looks are what draw me to picking out certain fabrics as well, as you can see here:

Many New Englanders remember Blueberries for Sal. This was his most famous book, I believe. This is a great book, too.

So that was me trying to talk about art! I hope that you enjoyed this post and learned a little more about what makes me tick. I encourage you to check out McCloskey's books at your local library or maybe pick one up on Amazon. They are worth the read and a look.