I wanted to start with Dorothy because she is our heroine. The book begins with a description of the great grey prairie. The story says:
The sun had baked the plowed land into a grey mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was not green, for the sun had burned the tops of the long blades until they were the same grey colour to be seen everywhere.
I wanted to capture that feeling of bleakness so I first painted the background of pages 1 and 2 a sepia tone. Then I used a photocopy of an illustration of Dorothy done by Trina Schart Hyman. I printed it in grayscale so it would look faded. Then I carefully coloured in parts of the photo ( the blue and white checks on her dress which were said to be faded from repeated washings but still a pretty frock and her hair and cheeks.) True fans will know she didn't change in to the blue and white gingham dress until after she arrived in Oz, but I have always loved this illustration and wanted to use it.
I tried to colour it in a way that resembled hand tinted photographs. My mother had some from her childhood where parts like the skin of the person stayed grey but the clothes and hair and cheeks were a ghostly translucent colour.
The book is clear that Toto was what saved her from growing as grey as her other surroundings. So I made Toto out of felt and sewed him a little beady eye and nose and inserted him into the picture.
Lastly, I printed out a quote in several fonts (I do love using mixed fonts for emphasis, as you will see!) and mounted it on some fantastic fancy paper I have. This paper is printed to look dirty, damaged and distressed so it was perfect for Kansas.
Then I moved on to Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. The descriptions of Em and Henry are so sad and stark in the book.
When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun and wind had changed her,too. They had taken the sparkle from her eyes and left them a sober grey: they had taken the red from her cheeks and lips, and they were grey also. She was thin and gaunt and never smiled.When Dorothy, who was an orphan, first came to her, Aunt Em had been so startled by the child's laughter that she would scream and press her hands upon her heart whenever Dorothy's merry voice reached her ears:and she still looked at the little girl with wonder that she could find anything to laugh at.
Uncle Henry fares marginally better.
Uncle Henry never laughed. He worked hard form morning til night and did not know what joy was. He was grey also, from his long beard to his rough boots, and he looked stern and solemn, and rarely spoke.
With the exception of the beard, I have always thought that the couple painted in Grant Wood's 1930 painting were the spit of Em and Henry. So that is what I used. Again, I printed the page in greyscale to make it faded and then gave them each a hint of colour--her cameo and hair and his dungarees. In the painting they are standing in front of a house and so I used some fancy paper I had to give the illusion of a timber house as described in the book. If you look carefully, the picture is actually old wooden yardsticks with advertisements for Victorian companies. I wanted to give them a roof, but there was not enough space and so I designed a pop up roof with a hinge that can fold down when the book is closed.
I am really pleased how the two illustrations look. Here you can see them side by side.
Stay tuned for a cyclone!
I am totally blown away! Such perfection in your choices.
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