Esphyr Slobodkina facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Esphyr Slobodkina
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Slobodkina seated in front of Irish Elegy, c.1948-50
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| Born | September 22, 1908 Chelyabinsk, Russia |
| Died | July 21, 2002 (aged 93) Glen Head, New York |
| Pen name | Phyra Slobodkina |
| Occupation | Artist, author |
| Nationality | American (naturalized) |
| Education | National Academy of Design |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Literary movement | abstraction |
| Notable works | Caps for Sale |
| Notable awards | Lewis Carroll Shelf Award, 1958 |
| Spouse | Ilya Bolotowsky (m. 1933–1938) William Urquhart (m. 1960–1963) |
Esphyr Slobodkina (pronounced ESS-phere sloh-BOD-kee-nah) was a talented Russian-American artist, writer, and illustrator. She is most famous for her classic children's picture book, Caps for Sale. Slobodkina was also a well-known avant-garde artist in the mid-1900s. This means she was part of a group of artists who created new and experimental art.
Contents
Who Was Esphyr Slobodkina?
Esphyr Slobodkina was born in Chelyabinsk, Russia, in 1908. When she was a child, the Russian Revolution happened in 1917. Because of this, her family moved to Harbin, Manchuria (which is now part of China). There, she began studying art and architecture.
In 1928, Slobodkina moved to the United States. She continued her art studies at the National Academy of Design in New York City. It was there that she met Ilya Bolotowsky, who would later become her husband.
Starting the American Abstract Artists Group
Esphyr Slobodkina and Ilya Bolotowsky were among the first members of a group called the American Abstract Artists. This group started in 1936. Like many Russian artists, Slobodkina loved bright, clear colors and simple, flat shapes in her art. This style was inspired by old Russian art and crafts.
How She Started Writing Children's Books
In 1938, Slobodkina met Margaret Wise Brown, a famous children's author. Slobodkina wanted to be an illustrator. So, she created a story with collages called Mary And The Poodies to show Brown.
This meeting started a new path for Slobodkina. She began illustrating many children's stories for Ms. Brown. Some of these included Sleepy ABCs and the Big and Little series. Even while doing this, she kept working on her abstract art.
Her Most Famous Book: Caps for Sale
In the late 1930s, Esphyr Slobodkina started writing and illustrating her own children's books. She published 24 books in total. Her book Caps for Sale (published in 1940) is a true classic.
Caps for Sale has sold over two million copies. It has also been translated into more than a dozen languages around the world. In 1958, the book won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award.
Other children's books she wrote include:
- The Wonderful Feast (first published in 1955)
- The Clock (1956)
- The Long Island Ducklings (1961)
- Pezzo the Peddler and the Circus Elephant (1967), which was later reissued as Circus Caps for Sale (2002).
Life and Travels
In 1948, Slobodkina decided to leave New York City. She had saved enough money to build a house in Great Neck, New York. She lived there with her mother until 1977.
During this time, she was invited to two special places for artists: the Yaddo artist’s colony and the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire. These places allow artists to focus on their work.
In 1960, Slobodkina married William Urquhart. They had met in 1942 at an art show. Sadly, he passed away in 1963 after a long illness. Slobodkina said it took her about six years to recover from the sadness.
Later, Slobodkina and her mother started traveling to Florida to be near her sister. In 1979, they moved permanently to Hallandale Beach, Florida. After her brother-in-law and mother passed away, her sister Tamara joined her. The two sisters lived together for the rest of Slobodkina's life. They moved a few more times before settling in Glen Head, Long Island.
Esphyr Slobodkina passed away in 2002.
Her Unique Art Style
Throughout the 1930s, Slobodkina developed a special way of working with oil paints. Her style was flat and abstract, using lines and shapes that seemed to float or connect.
By the late 1930s and 1940s, she used many different techniques and materials. Many of her artworks were collages and constructions. She would combine paint, wood, plastic, and metal. She even used everyday objects like parts from old typewriters and computers to create amazing and often funny art.
Her work became very well-known. In 1943, Slobodkina's art was shown in an important exhibition called Exhibition by 31 Women. This show was at Peggy Guggenheim's Art of This Century gallery in New York.
Harold Porcher, an expert on Slobodkina's art, said, "Her life’s work pulled imagery and objects together into magnificent compositions time and time again." He compared her to a mockingbird, which borrows and changes songs from other birds to create its own music.
Slobodkina was an early member of the American Abstract Artists group. This group helped make abstract art a respected form of expression in America. This was important because it helped shift the art world's focus from Paris to New York City.
In her later years, Slobodkina continued to be very creative. She worked on serious abstract paintings. She also enjoyed making sculptures, wall hangings, and jewelry. She often used parts from old typewriters and computers for these creations.
As Anne Cohen DePietro wrote, Slobodkina's "enduring delight in the creative act" and her focus on her artistic vision in many different ways "continues to enchant."
Her Lasting Impact
In April 2000, when she was 91 years old, Slobodkina created the Slobodkina Foundation. This foundation works to protect, preserve, and display her art. It also aims to teach people about Slobodkina's work. The foundation encourages others to follow their dreams by learning about her achievements.
Before she died in 2002, Slobodkina redesigned her home in Long Island, New York as a mini-museum and reading room for children. For over ten years, guests could visit and see more than 500 of her artworks. Although the house was sold in 2011, the Slobodkina Foundation continues to keep her amazing and varied artistic legacy alive.
Her paintings, sculptures, and books are part of many important collections. These include:
- The Metropolitan Museum in New York
- The Smithsonian
- The Philadelphia Museum of Art
- The Heckscher Museum of Art
- The Whitney Museum in New York
- The New York Public Library
- And many others.
List of Works
Written and illustrated by Esphyr Slobodkina unless otherwise noted
- The Little Fireman, written by Margaret Wise Brown (W. R. Scott, 1938) — illustrator
- Caps for Sale (W. R. Scott, 1940)
- The Little Cowboy, written by Margaret Wise Brown (W. R. Scott, 1948) — illustrator
- The Little Farmer, written by Margaret Wise Brown (W. R. Scott, 1948) — illustrator
- Sleepy ABC, written by Margaret Wise Brown (Lothrop, 1953) — illustrator
- The Clock (Abelard-Schuman, 1956)
- Little Dog Lost, Little Dog Found (Abelard-Schuman, 1956)
- Behind the Dark Window Shade (Lothrop, Lee and Shepard Co., 1958)
- The Little Dinghy (Abelard-Schuman, 1958)
- Pinky and the Petunias (Abelard-Schuman, 1959)
- Moving Day for the Middlemans (Abelard-Schuman, 1960)
- Jack and Jim (Abelard-Schuman, 1961)
- The Long Island Ducklings (Lantern Press, 1961)
- Boris and His Balalaika, illustrated by Vladimir Bobri (Abelard-Schuman, 1964)
- Pezzo the Peddler and the Circus Elephant (Abelard-Schuman, 1967) — later retitled Circus Caps for Sale
- The Wonderful Feast (E. M. Hale, 1967)
- The Flame, the Breeze, and the Shadow (Rand McNally and Co., 1967)
- Billy, the Condominium Cat (Addison-Wesley, 1980)
- Spots, Alias Prince (E. Slobodkina, 1987)
- Mary and the Poodies (E. Slobodkina, 1994)
- More Caps for Sale with Ann Marie Mulhearn Sayer (HarperCollins, 2015) — published posthumously
- Caps for Sale and the Mindful Monkeys with Ann Marie Mulhearn Sayer (HarperCollins, 2017) — published posthumously
