COLUMBIAKids Spring 2009 Featured Illustrator

When we went looking for a Northwest illustrator to work with on the Spring 2009 issue, the art of Richard Jesse Watson beckoned. His attention to detail, delightful creatures and characters, and ability to capture the essence of a story in a single scene is amazing. He was game when we talked about developing our first rebus for "Word Play." He was intent on getting every detail right for Kirby Larson’s "One Day in History" story. It’s been an honor and a joy to have Richard Jesse Watson, author-illustrator of THE MAGIC RABBIT and illustrator of many other books for children, as our Featured Illustrator in this issue of COLUMBIAKids. We are thrilled to be able to add his original artwork to the Washington State Historical Society collection.

Our favorite quote from RJW:

"...ever since I was the size of a fire hydrant I drew pictures that I could play in. Pictures in which to wander far and wide, to go anywhere and do anything. I could run barefoot through a forest fire, lasso giant sloths and saber-toothed tigers, and then get ever so sssthtuck in the Tar Pits, only to be rescued by German shepherds. Pictures were my own rocket ship to planets of unlimited imagination."

And now, with his COLUMBIAKids imagery, Richard has both rocketed us into another time and helped us see the natural world in a whole new way...