Harry by the Sea (and in the Garden)

My Children's Book Art Camp took a look at the adorable Harry by the Sea by Gene Zion. I still have by original beloved copy from childhood (copyright 1965). We did this project in 2 parts which I find works well for younger children. The background was painted using illustrator Margaret Boy Graham's minimal use of yellow gold and green for the sand, surf and sky. They also had the option of going in a completely different direction and creating a garden for Harry to traipse through. This was inspired by the book, The Imaginary Garden (thank you again for a wonderful book recommendation Erica from Art Project Girl). I knew I had a few girls in the class that would love this option. We created Harry with a simple line drawing lesson adding smudges and spots with charcoal. These were cut out and glued to their background and finished with a charcoal cast shadow underneath his feet. I loved seeing the moms' reaction at pick-up as it was also a childhood favorite book of theirs as well. :)