Robin D. Brickman (1954-) Biography

Born 1954, in Arlington, VA; two Education: Bennington College, B.A., 1976. Hobbies and other interests: Music (piano), fiber arts.

Addresses

office—Robin Brickman Illustrations, 32 Fort Hoosac Place, Williamstown, MA 01267.

Career

Freelance illustrator.

Member

Western Massachusetts Illustrators Guild, Children's Literature Connection, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Honors Awards

Child Study Association Children's Book of the Year designation, 1993; Gold Award for Creative Excellence in Dimensional Illustration, 1997; Giverny Award.

Writings

ILLUSTRATOR

Laurence Pringle, Being a Plant, Crowell (New York, NY), 1983.

Keith Brandt, Insects, Troll Associates (Mahwah, NJ), 1985.

Miranda Smith and Anna Carr, Rodale's Garden Insect, Disease, and Weed Identification Guide, Rodale Press (Emmaus, PA), 1988.

Jay M. Pasachoff, Peterson First Guide to Astronomy, Houghton Mifflin (Boston, MA), 1988.

Jeff and Liz Ball, Rodale's Flower Garden Problem Solver: Annuals, Perennials, Bulbs, and Roses, Rodale Press (Emmaus, PA), 1990.

Mary Packard, I Wonder How Parrots Can Talk: And Other Neat Facts about Birds, Western Pub. Co. (Racine, WI), 1992.

Jennifer Daniel, My First Book of Questions: Easy Answers to Hard Questions Children Ask, Scholastic (New York, NY), 1992.

Pat Lowery Collins, I Am an Artist, Millbrook Press (Brookfield, CT), 1992.

Stephen Swinburne, Swallows in the Birdhouse, Millbrook Press (Brookfield, CT), 1996.

Wendy Pfeffer, A Log's Life, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1997.

Molly Cone, Who Knows Ten?: Children's Tales of the Ten Commandments, UAHC Press (New York, NY), 1998.

Cheryl Harness, Midnight in the Cemetery: A Spooky Search-and-Find Alphabet Book, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1999.

Edith Thacher Hurd, Starfish, HarperCollins Publishers (New York, NY), 2000.

Sneed B. Collard, III, Beaks!, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 2002.

Sneed B. Collard, III, One Night in the Coral Sea, Charlesbridge (Watertown, MA), 2005.

Sidelights

Robin D. Brickman is the illustrator of numerous children's books, including Beaks! by Sneed B. Collard, III, Starfish by Edith Thacher Hurd, and Midnight in the Cemetery: A Spooky Search-and-Find Alphabet Book by Cheryl Harness. "The term 'paper collage' doesn't convey the three-dimensional quality of Brickman's striking pictures," commented Booklist reviewer Carolyn Phelan of the illustrations in Beaks!, which helps children focus on the diversity of nature. Remarking on Brickman's artwork for Starfish, a reviewer for the Horn Book stated that the illustrator "has done startling new cut-paper collage illustrations….Watercolor washes, marbling techniques, and shocking colors portray the starfish in all their chromatic glory." A Publishers Weekly reviewer also enjoyed Brickman's illustrations, this time in Midnight in the Cemetery. Describing the illustrations as "funereal collages," the critic added: "With their 3-D-like effects and morbid colors, the tableaux recall the motionless contents of a Victorian bell jar."

Brickman told Something about the Author: "I have worked as a professional illustrator for well over twenty years. I began to work with three-dimensional painted paper collage in 1994. Although I have a B.A. from Bennington College in botany and graphic arts, much of my book illustration is self-taught. Most, but not all, of my work is natural science illustration. I developed the art in the books I illustrate by combining many different skills. My career has been a cumulative journey, beginning with pen-and-ink line work, adding color, and then adding dimensional art to my work. My 3-D paper sculptures are unique in the field. I recommend trying to develop new techniques or new artistic styles because one needs to grow personally, and because this business demands it. That, and persistence, has been essential to my most recent successes. One other important aspect of my career is the development of school workshops where I teach students how to work in the three-dimensional paper sculpture method I use. These are highly successful workshops and have brought me into schools and museums, as well as radio and television interviews. These programs also connect the books I have illustrated with the art and science that they portray."