EXTRACTS: Illustrators issue 12 © 2015 The Book Palace (96 PAGES in Full edition)

94 The Bookshelf: Ladybirds, Dinosaurs and Cobblers Richard Williams is one of the most influential artists to have graced the field of animation. A prodigious talent, his first piece of animation was created when he was twelve years old and his film The Little Island garnered him a BAFTA at the age of twenty five. Before long the Canadian born artist was runninghis own studio fromthe heart of London's Soho, where his talents were employed to enliven TV commercials with his wildly inventive animation as well as providing some of the most memorable title sequences for blockbuster movies that ensured he was a force to be reckoned with in a highly competitive field. But the awards and commercial success were not what Williams craved. They were useful, but only insofar as they enabled him to devote all his available energies into creating the most mind- blowing animated film that the world had ever seen. The story of what happened next has been turned into one of the most compelling documentaries ever created. Kevin Schreck's filmhas garnered a whole slew of awards and when you see it you will realise why. An inspirational, moving and thought provoking film, you will be all the richer for having witnessed it. Ladybird By Design 100 Years of Words and Pictures By Lawrence Zeegen Paperback 256 pages Ladybird Books Penguin Random House £20.00/ $40.00 l illustrators is also available in the USA from budplant.com Ladybird books were a ubiquitous part of growing up in 1950s Britain. Over the next twenty years the series became so successful that the books were translated into thirty languages and became a publishing phenomenon. The book that Lawrence Zeegen has produced provides a fascinating insight into the almost serendipitous events that led to their creation. The story of this remarkable publishing company is enlivened with a generous selection of photographs as well as scores of illustrations from the vast array of titles that Ladybird produced throughout its lengthy heyday. The illustrations themselves, by artists such as John Berry and Harry Wingfield, are a virtual time capsule of an era of British life which is now just a distant memory and they appear all the more charming for their guileless optimism Illustration connoisseurs will have a great deal of fun with this book, as they seek out offerings from artists such as Robert Ayrton and Charles Tunnicliffe, plus too many more to be able to list here. A definite must for a truly pleasurable browse back to an altogether more innocent era. Portfolio: The Complete Various Drawings By Mark Schultz Hardbound 272 pages Flesk Publications $50.00 Signed & Slipcased Ltd edition $100.00 Mark Schultz has been a firm favourite for lovers of retro-styled graphic novels ever since he shot to fame with his hit series Cadillacs and Dinosaurs , which debuted in 1986. Since that auspicious debut he has worked both as a writer and an illustrator on a variety of projects, but his love for beautiful women, retro cars and giant lizards has never waned. Although fans of his Cadillacs and Dinosaurs comic strip have been kept waiting for a new instalment for nigh on twenty years, Schultz has continued to explore the themes which dominated the comics in an ongoing series of portfolios, which are now out of print and hard to track down at affordable prices. Schultz's publisher, John Fleskes, has come to the rescue and published all five folios within the covers of one luxurious tome, which also includes new annotations by the artist and a larger page size within which to present Schultz's seductive and visceral artwork. Available in two editions, the latter being housed in a slipcase, which is an event in itself, and bearing a signature and numbered by the artist, this book is an essential for all fans of 1950s styled science-fantasy art. Persistence of Vision Produced and Directed by Kevin Schreck The story of Richard Williams' ill-fated magnum opus, 'The Thief and the Cobbler' Running time 1 hour and 23 minutes http://kevinschreck.com $25.00