Reynolds, J. (2015) When I was the greatest. First Atheneum Books for Young Readers paperback edition edn. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
Reynolds, J., Girmay, A. and Kiely, B. (2021) All American Boys. Faber and Faber.
Written & Illustrated by Shaun Tan
ISBN: 978-1-4063-8924-1
Published by Walker Studio
Reviewed by Karl Andy Foster
Publishers website https://www.walkerstudio.com/books/
Shaun Tan’s Website https://www.shauntan.net
Pitch
This is a visual dairy of the influences that drive Shaun Tan to be a creator. Whether that be from direct observation or his imagination he is able to conjure up compelling images that keeps one asking questions. As a master draftsman his work commands respect and thoughtful consideration. This comprehensive and thoughtful tome from Walker Studios contains much fun, wit and wisdom.
Review
All artists have an inner kingdom and internal energies that drive us to make artefacts. There are several ways to communicate this to the outer world but none are as intriguing as the artist sketchbook. Visual language can be heavily influenced by commercial concerns but we also need to find ways to express our richer personal drives. Shaun Tan writes about this process with ease and great depth of feeling. Embodied at the heart of this enterprise is his assertion that it’s important to keep things fresh.
Sketchbooks are used to help you work out what you want to say and what you wish to keep personal. Your ideas live behind closed pages. That is why artist’s sketchbooks interest the public so much. It’s the chance to discover secrets or hidden passions that others may have missed in the more visible works.
Tan’s drawings are delicate in tone, shade and line work. He is able to infuse his work with bold and dynamic areas of intense colour. There is a palpable impression that we are being invited into a private space that is only meant for the initiated. The printing on some pages evokes in facsimile his real notebook pages that reminds me of artist James Jean’s Process Recess books. This texture adds to the authenticity.
In his work there is for me a strong connection to the landscape similar to that of the artist Sidney Nolan and the hallucinatory scenes from Peter Weir’s ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ (1975). These landscapes frame something that is just out of sight that will amaze us if we dare to focus our gaze upon them. He also renders grainy, colourful, shocking and eerie townscapes that contrast perfectly with the more open spaces. Tan’s expert handling of scale and perspective is used to create worlds that are unexpected but also deeply satisfying.
The creative process is key to the formation of measurable outputs and helps one to maintain and sustain one’s ability to stay current and to produce work of relevance to oneself and a wider audience. This book will inspire students and young people who need to be encouraged to find a place to store their own visual insights and secure their inner kingdom.
08 October 2019
