Essays

The Work of Esphyr Slobodkina

By Anne Cohen DePietro When considering the work of Esphyr Slobodkina, to do so from an interdisciplinary perspective is insightful.  The playful, wry titles that she favors hint at an alternate, successful career as a renowned author and illustrator of children’s books, including her classic, Caps for Sale.  She has participated in a broad spectrum […] Read More →

The Mockingbird and The Melting Pot

by Harold E. Porcher The American Abstract Artists (AAA) was founded by a group of artists that was very influential in shifting the public opinion of American abstract painting in the 1930s and 1940s from one of rejection or mere tolerance to acceptance. Unfortunately, the recognition the AAA received for their artistic accomplishments is restricted […] Read More →

Modernist at Story Hour: Esphyr Slobodkina’s Picture Books

by Leonard S. Marcus Esphyr Slobodkina turned her hand to the picture book for the most pragmatic of reasons, as a means of paying the rent, but quickly embraced the genre for the opportunities it held in store to combine her central creative passion for abstraction with her natural delight in storytelling. In 1937, in […] Read More →