Elise Primavera facts for kids

Elise Primavera was born on May 19, 1955. She is an American author and illustrator who creates books for kids. She started her career in 1981 as an illustrator for different publishers. For over 30 years, she has drawn pictures for many books. She has also written and illustrated many popular books herself.

About Elise Primavera

Elise Primavera was born in West Long Branch, New Jersey. When she was young, her brother taught her how to draw. She loved copying cartoons from comic books. She would draw on anything, even her school books and clothes!

Her interest in art became more serious when she was 11. She got sick with rheumatic fever and had to stay in bed all summer. During this time, she practiced drawing a lot. She used "learn-to-draw" books to get better.

Elise's childhood dream was to become an Olympic horseback rider. After she got well, she went back to her love for horses.

Becoming an Artist

As a child, Elise admired the work of famous artists like Michelangelo. Her parents had big copies of his paintings that she enjoyed. She says that being sick helped her focus on art in a serious way. She also liked the art of Howard Pyle. She found his work during a trip to a college art museum.

After visiting an art museum in college, she decided to change her dream. She chose to focus on becoming an artist instead of an Olympian. Elise used to live in Red Bank, New Jersey. Now, she lives in New York City.

Elise's Career

Even though Elise loved art from a young age, she once said, "I can't say I ever really dreamed I'd grow up to be an artist." Her main goal was to be an Olympic horseback rider. In college, she tried fashion illustration. But she soon realized it was hard to start a career in that field.

After college, she decided to become an artist. Her first published drawings appeared in 1981. These were for the books The Mermaid's Cape and The Snug Little House. Her first book that she wrote herself was Basil and Maggie, published in 1983.

Creative Ideas and Famous Works

Elise Primavera has shared that she gets her best ideas while taking showers! She wrote her book Auntie Claus in 1999 after one of these "shower sessions."

The New York Times newspaper said that her drawings in Auntie Claus were full of "fantastic energy." They were so good that special displays based on her illustrations were shown in the windows of the main Saks Fifth Avenue store in New York City.

In 2005, Elise was chosen to create art for the White House Holiday Program. Her first full-length novel, The Secret Order of the Gumm Street Girls, came out in 2006. In recent years, she has written many books. She released two books in the Fred and Anthony series in 2007. She is also working on another book about the Gumm Street Girls.