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"Grand Canyon"
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Wendell Minor is a traditionalist and a romantic. He has had a romance with America since his childhood in Aurora, Illinois, and as he explores more regions more closely, his love of the country grows with a vision that celebrates the beautiful, the lyrical. After completing his studies at the Ringling School of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida, Wendell began creating original designs for book publishers in New York City. His cover illustrations have enhanced over 2000 works, among them, the covers of bestsellers Truman by David McCullough, The Prince of Tides and Beach Music by Pat Conroy, Fried Green Tomatoes and Welcome to the World, Baby Girl by Fannie Flagg, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Julie's Wolf Pack by Jean Craighead George, Alaska by James Michener and Terms of Endearment by Larry McMurtry.
With Buzz Aldrin at the National Book Festival, Fall 2005
Wendell draws upon his lifelong affinity for enviromental issues to create illustrations for children's books, which he finds especially satisfying, as they allow him to combine his love of the outdoors with his independent pursuits – including painting the landscape from life, in the tradition of classic American painters such as Homer, Hopper, and Wyeth. His wish is to inspire children to go out into the fields and woods and mountains to see wildlife in its natural habitat, and to give the children a positive perspective about the beauty that abounds in the world. Happily, the poets and authors whose words he illustrates share his deep respect for the natural world.
With Florence at the National Press Club Authors' Night, Fall 2005
Wendell's travels have taken him from the tropical Everglades of Florida, to Barrow, Alaska in the Arctic circle, from the Midwest to the Grand Canyon in the Southwest, and throughout the United States, to research his many children's books, which have won national acclaim.
“Artist Wendell Minor has said, ‘A picture invites the viewer into it and offers a sense of mystery. It lets the viewer become part of the process. A good picture, like a good story, is timeless.’ The timelessness of Minor’s art begins when he gets an idea or insight that he wants to create and with his editor, he finds an author who share his sensibilities and interest in a particular subject. When Minor begins researching a subject, he often travels to get a clear sense of what he is portraying. He enjoys being out in “the field” observing his subjects and gaining the inspiration he needs to create good composition, value, color and texture. The works he feels closest to are his illustrations for children’s books. Minor loves bringing scenes of the natural world to children. ‘If we lose touch with nature,’ he has said, ‘then we lose touch with ourselves.’
Minor also utilizes the computer to scan a sketch, recolor and enlarge it and experiment with different type faces. His work preparation includes taking many photographs, doing sketches and taking notes. The finished work must relate in ‘harmony of movement and composition.’ The work becomes ‘not just a visual interpretation of a story, but a story on its own.’ ”
- From “Visual Solutions” Michelle Gillett, Columnist and Editor of The Women’s Time, on Visual Solutions: Seven Illustrators and the Creative Process - a recent exhibition at the Norman Rockwell Museum.
A Past President of the Society of Illustrators in New York City, Wendell currently lives in rural Connecticut with his wife and business partner Florence Friedmann Minor, a former film editor for ABC television. Their first picture book collaboration entitled ?Christmas Tree!? was published in 2005. Wendell and Florence share their home, and studio, with their cats Sofie and Cindercat.
Wendell Minor is also a member of The Children’s Book Council (CBC), a non-profit trade organization dedicated to encouraging literacy and the use and enjoyment of children’s books. Click below for more information.
Please click on the link below for Wendell's complete biography:
http://www.answers.com/topic/wendell-g-minor
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"Art for the Written Word"
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The Children's Book Committee at Bank Street College of Education has selected "Rachel: The Story of Rachel Carson" for the Best Children's Books of the Year 2003
Wendell Minor will receive an Honorary Doctorate from Aurora University on Sunday, June 6th, 2004.
The John Burroughs Association has selected "Rachel: The Story of Rachel Carson" for the 2003 List of Nature Books for Young Readers
"Rachel" was also selected for the 2003 NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children list
All the paintings from the book "Into the Woods: John James Audubon Lives His Dream" have been added to the permanent collection of the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art
"Into the Woods: John James Audubon Lives His Dream" has been selected for the 2003 NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children list
Two Wendell Minor paintings have been added to the permanent collection of the New Britain Museum of American Art
Wendell Minor has been elected to the Board of Trustees of the Norman Rockwell Museum
Wendell Minor Inducted into Fox Valley Arts Hall of Fame
Wendell Minor was inducted as a charter member of The Fox Valley Arts Hall of Fame on April 4, 2002.
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Selected Solo Exhibitions |
| 2003 |
“America the Beautiful Illustrated”
Norman Rockwell Museum
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| 2003 |
“Fifteen Years of Picture Book Art”
The Bruce Museum, Greenwich, CT
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| 2002 |
“The Illustrated Book:
A Wendell Minor Retrospective”
The Aurora Public Art Commission, Aurora, IL
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| 2001 |
“Every Picture Tells a Story: The Children’s Book Art of Wendell Minor”
The Gallery at the University of New Haven, West Haven, CT
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| 2000 |
“The Illustrated Word”
Chautauqua Center for the Visual Arts, Chautauqua, NY
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| 1999 |
1999 “The Fine Art of Book Illustration”
Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI
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| 1998 |
“Art For the Written Word”
The Boston Public Library, Boston, MA
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| 1998 |
“Grassroots”
The Chicago Public Library, Chicago, IL
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| 1998 |
“Art For the Written Word”
Babbidge Library/University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT
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| 1997 |
“The Fine Art of Children’s Book Illustration”
The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
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| 1996 |
“Art for the Written Word”
Mattatuck Museum of Art, Waterbury, CT
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| 1996 |
“Art for the Written Word”
Elizabeth Stone Gallery, Birmingham, MI
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| 1995 |
“Art for the Written Word”
Tatistcheff & Co., Inc., New York City
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| 1995 |
“Art for the Written Word”
Thurber House, Columbus, OH
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| 1995 |
“Magnificent America”
HarperCollins Publishers, New York City
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| 1994 |
“American Places”
Elizabeth Stone Gallery, Birmingham, MI
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| 1989 |
“An American Perspective”
Museum of American Illustration, New York City
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| 1985 |
University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL
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| 1979 |
Hadler Rodriguez Galleries, New York City
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| 1978 |
Hadler Rodriguez Galleries, Houston, TX
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Selected Group Exhibitions
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| 2002 |
“The Art of the Book: Twenty Years of Art & Design from the University of Georgia Press”
Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, GA
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| 2002 |
“The Real and the Imagined: Animals in Children’s Book Illustration” The Birdcraft Museum, Greenwich, CT
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| 2001-2002 |
“The Real and the Imagined: Animals in Children’s Book Illustration” Bruce Museum, Greenwich, CT
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| 1999 |
“Visual Solutions: Seven Illustrators and the the Creative Process”
Norman Rockwell Museum, Stockbridge, Massachusetts
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| 1997-2001 |
“Down Under and Over Here: Children’s Book illustration from
Australia and America”
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum, Wausau, Wisconsin
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| 1997 |
“American Country”
Duracell Corporation, Bethel, CT
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| 1996 |
“Illustrations From Children’s Literature”
Danforth Museum of Art, Framingham, MA
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| 1996 |
“The Boys of Summer”
Storyopolis, Los Angeles, CA
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| 1996 |
“Purr! Children’s Book Illustrators Brag About their Cats”
Boca Raton Children’s Museum, Boca Raton, FL
Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH
The Lexington Museum, Lexington, KY
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| 1995/1996 |
“Speak! Children’s Book Illustrators Brag About Their Dogs”
Mazza Museum, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH
Pittsburgh Children’s Museum, Pittsburgh, PA
Austin Children’s Museum, Austin, TX
Chicago Children’s Museum, Chicago, IL
The Dog Museum, St. Louis, MO
Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI
Saginaw Museum of Art, Saginaw, MI
South Ohio Museum of Art, Ohio
Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, OH
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| 1995 |
Sixteenth Annual Mystic Maritime Gallery International Marine Art Exhibition
Mystic Maritime Gallery, Mystic, CT
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| 1994 |
Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, Kalamazoo, MI
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| 1993 |
Schaumburg Township District Library, Schaumburg, IL
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| 1993 |
“This Wondrous World-Children’s Book Illustration in New England”
Lyman Allyn Art Museum, New London, CT
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| 1989 |
“Sights and Sounds: The Art of STS-26” NASA
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
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| 1989 |
Traveling Exhibition for the U.S. Coast Guard’s 200th Anniversary
National tour
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| 1983 |
“The Image Makers”
Museum of Art, Science and Industry, Bridgeport, CT
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| 1980 |
Moran Fine Arts, Tulsa, OK
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| 1978 |
Tokyo Gakuin Designer’s College, Tokyo, Japan
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Selected Public Collections
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Norman Rockwell Museum, MA
Illinois State Museum
Muskegon Museum of Art, MI
Mattatuck Museum, CT
NASA, Kennedy Space Center, FL
Arizona Historical Society
U.S. Air Force Collection, Pentagon, Washington, DC
Library of Congress, Washington, DC
Museum of American Illustration, NYC
U.S. Coast Guard, Washington, DC
U.S. Postal Service, Washington, DC
Schaumburg Public Library, IL
Mazza Museum, The University of Findlay, OH
The Festival Gallery Collection, Keene State College, NH
The Aurora Public Art Commission, IL
Kerlan Collection, University of Minnesota
Dodd Center, University of Connecticut
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