From The Open Library
Building a Visual World: Roger Duvoisin’s Day and Night
A close look at Roger Duvoisin’s Day and Night and the visual system behind its loose, playful world. More inside The Studio Table.
From The Open Library
A Simple Dream in May: May Horses by Jan Wahl and Blair Lent
A quiet reflection on May Horses, childhood daydreaming, magical realism, and blue and orange horses. Sign up to The Spread Table to read more about how wonder can enter ordinary life without explaining itself.
Long Essay
Negative Space Guides (Shape & Space #2)
Empty space is rarely empty in picture books. It can guide the eye, slow the page down, make a character feel small or safe, and give emotion room to deepen. In this Shape & Space post on The Spread Table, I’m looking at how negative space quietly shapes the way a story feels.
Thinking Picture Book
Pictures Can Think: On The Hunter and the Animals by Tomie dePaola
Lately I’ve been obsessed with wordless storytelling, and The Hunter and the Animals is one of the books that keeps opening up for me. This post is a close look at how Tomie dePaola uses image, sequence, and empathy to carry an entire story without text. Sign up to read more on The Spread Table.
Thinking Picture Book
Shape Language: Soft vs Sharp (Shape & Space #1)
Soft shapes slow a reader down. Sharp shapes create tension. In picture books, shapes begin telling the emotional story long before the text arrives. A reflection on visual pacing and shape language in illustration. Sign up to read more at the Spread Table.
Long Essay
Border Play #3 (Finale): The Frame That Changes with the Story
Borders don’t always stay still. In this final Border Play essay, I look at frames that shift with the story, using Where the Wild Things Are and What Is a River? to explore how changing edges carry emotion, time, and transformation. Read more at The Spread Table.
Picture Book
Border Play #2: When the Frame is a Cage
If you make picture books, borders are never neutral. Sometimes they guide; sometimes they trap on purpose. In this essay, I break down what happens when the frame becomes a cage. Subscribe to The Spread Table to read more.
Thinking Picture Book
The Fold (Gutter) Between Pages
Every picture book hinges on a fold, the space where pacing, balance, and emotion live. An essay on how design and story meet in the quiet middle.
Picture Book
Silent Storytelling: How Silence Lives on the Picture Book Page
A long-form essay on silence, space, and storytelling in picture books — from the PB studio and the field. Subscribe to read more at The Spread Table to receive new essays and PB notes.
Picture Book
Border Play #1: When the Frame Holds the Story
Some mornings, the drawing feels like it could spill right off the page. The lines wander, the characters stretch, and the scene hums with motion.... Subscribe to read more at The Spread Table tier to receive new essays and PB notes.