Guest Post: About Marc Brown

Guest Blogger: Kate Van Auken
Director at Rawson Memorial District Library in Cass City, Michigan

Not many people are able to pursue a career which is their life’s ambition and make a living at it. Marc Brown, author and illustrator, is one of those lucky people. Even though there were colleagues that doubted his ability, he continued to follow his talent and become a well-loved author and illustrator who is probably best known for his Arthur book series. These books were so popular with young readers they were spun off into a Public Broadcasting System (PBS) children’s program called Arthur’s World. Brown has written and illustrated over one hundred fifty Arthur adventures, but his career really began with a contract job creating illustrations for textbook type works. Brown began illustrating other author’s works and with much hard work and perseverance, embarked on a writing and illustrating journey of his own that would bring to life a famous children’s literature character along with many other works.

Biography
Mark Tolon Brown was born in Erie, Pennsylvania in 1946. In 1956 he legally changed his name to Marc because of the impact artist Marc Chagall had on him. “Through art books I discovered the work of Marc Chagall, and was so impressed, I changed my name from Mark to Marc” (Collier & Nakamura, 1993, p. 341). Brown married his first wife, Stephanie Marini, in 1968 and the couple had two children, Tolon Adam and Tucker Eliot. He divorced in 1977 and in 1983 married psychologist and writer, Laurne Krasny. Together, the couple has a daughter, Eliza Morgan.

As a child, Marc loved drawing and entertaining himself with basic pen, pencil and paper. A trip to the Chicago Art Institute found him falling in love with painting. While in high school, his art teacher suggested Marc try water colors and she went on to teach him everything she knew about this medium.

Marc then attended the Cleveland Institute of Art, majoring in painting. He studied print making, photography, textile and graphic design. His parents were not happy with his decision to attend art school and they did not provide any financial support while Marc was pursuing his education. Instead, Marc worked many part time jobs and with the help of his grandmother, Thora, he was able to attend school and graduate.

Brown landed a freelance illustrator job with Houghton Mifflin and he “learned more about opportunities in professional illustrating and decided to make it a career” (Collier & Nakamura, 1993, p. 342). In 1969, while illustrating text books, he was also teaching at Garland Junior College in Boston. Brown loved the consistency of the work, but felt he was losing his creative outlet as his illustrations were very structured and freelancers had to follow specific parameters in their illustrations.

His Legacy Begins
Marc Brown’s first non-textbook illustrations can be found in What Makes the Sun Shine? by Isaac Asimov published in 1971. Brown recalls this as a nerve wracking experience because not only was Asimov famous, but Brown never talked to him throughout the process of illustrating the text. As much as Brown enjoyed illustrating others works, he really wanted to write and illustrate his own creations.

Brown found support in colleague, Norma Farber, and magazine editor, Emilie McLeod. These two mentors gave Brown the much needed inspiration to reach his goal of becoming a published children’s author and illustrator. Arthur’s Nose, published in 1976, was Brown’s first accomplishment. Brown has gone on to write and illustrate an entire series of Arthur books which now include over one hundred picture books and over fifty chapter books. He has also written more than thirty other children’s titles and continues to illustrate the works of other authors.

Medium
For the majority of Brown’s career, he used mostly watercolor, pencil, and ink to create his illustrations. These techniques, which included concentration on character emotions, are used in the majority of the Arthur books and have evolved over thirty-five years (Lodge, 2004). In more current works by Brown, the reader notices his use of different mediums. In Wild About Books by Judy Sierra, Brown uses elaborate paintings to bring to life the author’s “rollicking” poetry (Kiefer, 2010, p. 198). Written by Lindsey Craig and illustrated by Brown, Dancing Feet! uses a collage and textured paper technique which make the artwork jump off the pages. Another example of his versatility is evident in Visiting the Art Museum that he wrote with his wife. Brown uses photographs of actual artwork from art museums around the country to bring the text to life. He is obviously very skilled when it comes to his ability to decide which illustrative technique will work best with the text of each story.

Awards
Brown, being an author and illustrator, has won many awards for his works. Among the most prestigious include eight Children’s Choice Awards from the Children’s Book Council which include Arthur’s Nose in 1976; the Horn Book Honor Award for Illustrations in 1980 for Why the Tide Ebbs and Flows; Notable Book recognition given by the American Library Association for Dinosaurs Beware! A Safety Guide in 1982, and the Library of Congress Book of the Year in 1985 for Swamp Monsters. Brown has also been recognized for his contributions to PBS and the Arthur’s World television program. The show has won many Emmy Awards as well as the Peabody Award for excellence in television (Taccone, 2005).

Examples of Works

The following examples of Brown’s illustrations were selected based on the fact that he has collaborated with a number of other authors over the years and by gathering works from each of the decades of Brown’s career, the reader may acquire a deeper understanding of his art.

   

Arthur’s Nose (1976). 
Written and illustrated by Marc Brown.  
Arthur is an aardvark and does not like his nose. It makes him feel different from his friends and he thinks he wants a new one. Arthur’s snout is very long and the illustrations are very dark brown, orange, and yellow. The lines in the drawings are very thick and bold and in Brown’s first few works, each of the characters distinctly resembles animals. Arthur’s teacher is an ape as is one of Arthur’s best friends, Francine. “A very different illustrated style than all that came after” (Brodie, 2003, p. 43). As the series progressed the illustrations have become lighter in texture and softer in color and Arthur himself has changed over the course of a few years. No longer does he have the signature long nose, but his face is more round, he wears glasses, his hands resemble those of humans and he is fully dressed.

Visiting the Art Museum (1986). 
Written and illustrated by Laurene Krasny Brown and Marc Brown.
As a family visits an art museum they are introduced to different art styles from primitive through twentieth century pop art. Watercolor and pen and ink drawings are the main illustrations in this work, but real works of art are placed strategically in the story to draw attention to the items one might see in an art museum. The contrast is very effective in setting off the text. For children reading this work, they will receive the benefit of wonderful illustrations and great photography incorporated into this story. This book is a unique way for an illustrator to highlight their talents by showcasing more than just drawings.

Arthur’s Mystery Envelope-Chapter Book 1 (1998). Written and illustrated by Marc Brown.
In this book adventure, Arthur is given a large envelope to bring home. The envelope is marked CONFIDENTIAL and Arthur is worried it has information about summer school. In this chapter book, there is one full-page illustration in each chapter. As children progress from picture books to chapter books, illustrations are less and less. Even though these sketches are black and white, there is much shadowing and shading which help to highlight items in the illustrations. The characters in these chapter books all have their mouths open signifying they are having the conversations that the text indicates. This gives the illustrations movement and makes the reader feel these characters are acting and moving along with the storyline. Chapter book illustrations, although less than a picture book, still help the emerging reader visualize the story.

Wild About Books (2004). Written by Judy Sierra and illustrated by Marc Brown. 

A fast paced story about Molly McGrew who is a librarian at the Springfield library. The fun begins when she drives the bookmobile to the zoo. There has been a great deal written about this work. When author Sierra found out Marc Brown was going to provide the illustrations, she knew “he’d bring a lot of humor to the book, plus sensitivity to children’s taste in art” (Lodge, 2004, p. 33). Brown stated that he “wanted to go back to where I was when I first started creating books, when I approached books in a more painterly way” (p. 33). Creating the art for this book Brown said, “it was a bit like learning a new language. For so many years with Arthur, I’d been thinking in a linear way. With the art for those books, I define everything in line then fill in colors. Here I went back to putting color next to color to define the form rather than outline it. It is a very different way of thinking for me, and it took me a while to get use to it” (pp. 33-34). Also while illustrating and coloring this book, Brown’s wife and daughter felt he should be more aggressive with color. After hearing their comments, he went back and repainted the first half of the book.

The sheer number of animals in this book in amazing. Brown has added creative expressions and colorization to these creatures which show them as curious, timid, relaxed, happy, and excited all because of books from the book mobile. There is also a great deal of humor in the paintings. For example, an otter is reading a waterproof version of Harry Potter, the bears are licking the pages of Teddy Bear Picnic, and the giraffes are each reading about basketball players, redwood trees and skyscrapers. The originality and freshness of the double page illustrations fit perfectly with the cadence of the rhyming text. Brown said, “this was the most exciting book I’ve ever worked on and the most fun. This has opened up a lot of other ideas for me and I consider this a turning point in my career” (p. 34).

Dancing Feet! (2010). Written by Lindsey Craig and illustrated by Marc Brown. 
This work is an easy to read rhyming book that shows different animals dancing. Brown has again created an interesting array of animal characters that coordinate beautifully with Craig’s rhyming text. Bright and vivid colors draw the reader in immediately and the happy expressions and frolicking actions of the characters encourage children and adults to read and reread this work. Brown’s illustration technique was created by using hand-painted papers and a collage process that focused on cutting the paper into primary shapes (Craig, 2010). A large grey circle represents an elephant’s body while orange triangles are perfect for a duck’s feet and beak. The end papers are just as thoughtful and represent animal’s feet and tracks on the front and children dancing with the animals on the back.

Interesting Facts About Marc Brown 

• There have been more than 50 million Arthur books sold worldwide.
• Brown hides his children’s names in some of the illustrations in his works.
• Arthur’s World PBS television program is shown in over 60 countries.
• More than 4 million Arthur videos have been sold. 
• Arthur turned 35 this year.
•  Brown’s own childhood experiences and those of his three children have been the main inspiration for the Arthur stories.
• Before writing and illustrating the Arthur book series, Brown worked as a truck driver, college professor, television art director, and a short-order cook.
• In 2005, Brown wrote a controversial episode for PBS’s Postcards from Buster. Buster, Arthur’s best friend, travels the country visiting real families to teach children about diversity. While in Vermont, Buster visits a family with lesbian mothers. PBS decided not to distribute this episode to 349 member stations, although 49 decided to air the program.
• Grandma Thora in the Arthur series is based on Brown’s real life grandma Thora.
• The Arthur books promote six basic ideals: reading is fun, learning to solve problems creatively, being a good friend, connecting to family, appreciative of diversity, and having fun.

Conclusion
Marc Brown is a very versatile author and illustrator. With his Arthur series of books and collaboration with other authors, Brown has added wonderfully creative books to many home, school, and library collections. From his pen and pencil drawings, his eclectic use of colored textured papers, and his brilliant paintings, readers witness how Brown has grown in his creative talents over thirty-five years. By branching out into public television, he has been able to reach many more children who may recognize his work when they visit their libraries. Illustrators are such an important part of children’s literature and yet they are sometimes overlooked. Viewing the progression of art work in children’s books over the past few decades, illustrators and artist have employed far more detailed drawings to enhance the written word. As technology continues to evolve it will be interesting to see what new techniques will come about in the next few decades.

Kate's Opinion
Personally, I have always loved the Arthur series of books. My children grew up with them as well as The Berenstain Bears books. As a parent I loved the messages in these books as they allowed the children in the stories to solve their own problems, but parents, and in some cases grandparents, are present and influential in the story lines. I found the muted colors and soft lines in the Arthur books very calming and the characters very expressive. With Brown’s more current works, I find how much I love the bold colors and texture techniques he uses to bring the illustrations to life. He is excellent at marrying the text to the illustrations whether he has authored the book or another author has written the text. This assignment has given me a new perspective on children’s illustrators and on illustrations in general.

Sources
(2005). Marc Tolon Brown. Retrieved September 28, 2011 from encyclopedia.com/article-1G2-3416600025/brown-marc-tolon-1946.html

(2011). PBS parents. Retrieved September 26, 2011 from http://www.pbs.org/parents/arthur/index.html

Brodie, C.S. (2003). Arthur! Arthur!: Marc Brown. Retrieved September 27, 2011, from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/hww/results/results_single_fulltext.jhtml;hwwilsonid=KVJ2OT3EEHA1BQA3DIKSFF4ADUNGIIV0

Brown, K.B., & Brown, M. (1986). Visiting the art museum. New York: E.P. Dutton.

Brown, M. (1998). Arthur’s mystery envelope. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Brown, M. (1976). Arthur’s nose. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Collier, L. & Nakamura, J. (1993). Major authors and illustrators for children and young adults, Vol. 1 A-B, Detroit, MI: Gale Research, Inc.

Craig, L. (2010). Dancing feet! New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Kiefer, B.Z. (2010). Charlotte Huck’s children’s literature. (10th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

Lodge, S. (2004). Arthur author tries new tack. Retrieved September 23, 2011, from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/hww/results/external_link_maincontentframe.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.44