all things wild and wonderful: reich károly’s children’s book illustrations

~ jama

Recently, while browsing online for bear pictures (as all good arctophiles are wont to do), I chanced upon the work of Hungarian artist Reich Károly (1922-1988).

Just in case you’re feeling a little color starved and need some spring into summer inspiration, thought I’d share some of his children’s book illustrations today. Who can resist his bright colors, whimsy, and contagious joy?

Not only did I find the bears I craved (he once designed some bear postage stamps!), but so many other wonderful animals too. His style is child-like, charming, and irresistible. You just have to smile when looking at his pictures. 🙂

I wasn’t able to find out very much about his background, other than that he was also a graphic artist and poster designer who illustrated some 500 children’s books.

He came from a farming family and was influenced by Greek and Roman mythology and the classic drawings of Picasso. His children’s illustrations reflect Hungarian peasant life and folklore.

Apparently he also made linocuts. His illustrations were rendered in pencil, ink, watercolor, wax crayon and pastels. Though his work is well known all over Hungary, and there have been British and German editions of his books, none of his books (as far as I know) were ever published or distributed in the U.S.

Hope you enjoy this little sampler. BTW, Reich is his surname, and “Károly” is Hungarian for “Charles.” 🙂

 

Now, don’t you feel happier, lighter, and brighter? Thought so! 🙂

HAVE A GOOD WEEK!

Copyright © 2018 Jama Rattigan of Jama’s Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.

14 thoughts on “all things wild and wonderful: reich károly’s children’s book illustrations”

  3. The colors are so lively–just what I needed this morning. Love the owls and roosters. Some of this art gives me a Chagall-ish vibe which I LOVE 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Glad you like Reich’s art — and speaking of Chagall, he’s coming up next week. 🙂 You must be psychic. 🙂

      Like

    1. Didn’t realize you collected bear books! And here I thought I couldn’t like you any more than I already did (which was a lot!). 🙂 Mr. Cornelius says he’s your forever fan.

      Like

Comments are closed.