Jan Ormerod facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jan Ormerod
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| Born | Janet Louise Hendry 23 September 1946 Bunbury, Western Australia |
| Died | 23 January 2013 (aged 66) Cambridge, England |
| Occupation | Illustrator |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Period | 1981–2012 |
| Genre | Children's picture books |
| Notable works |
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| Notable awards | Mother Goose Award 1982 |
| Spouse | Paul Ormerod |
Jan Ormerod (born Janet Louise Hendry on September 23, 1946 – died January 23, 2013) was a famous Australian illustrator of children's books. She became well-known for her book Sunshine, which had no words. It won the Mother Goose Award in 1982.
Her books were special because they used simple pictures with clear lines and bright colors. This helped tell a story that young children could easily understand and enjoy. Jan Ormerod worked on more than 50 books during her career. She illustrated books by other authors too, like a 1987 version of J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan. She also drew pictures for David Lloyd's story of "The Frog Prince".
Jan Ormerod started her art career in Britain after moving to England in 1980. Later, she created books that connected to her home country, Australia. These included Lizzie Nonsense (2004), Water Witcher (2008), and the award-winning Shake a Leg (2011). For Shake a Leg, she worked with Aboriginal writer Boori Monty Pryor.
Jan Ormerod's Journey as an Artist
Janet Louise Hendry was born in 1946 in Bunbury, a port city in Western Australia. She was the youngest of four sisters. As a child, she loved art and found ideas from British schoolgirl magazines and American comics.
She went to art college in Perth. After graduating, she taught art in high schools. Later, she taught at colleges for teachers and art schools. In 1971, she married Paul Ormerod, who was a children's librarian. They spent several years living in both Britain and Australia before settling in Cambridge, England, in 1987.
Jan Ormerod never planned to have children at first. But when her first daughter, Sophie, was born, she found being a mother very inspiring. She loved spending time with her daughter. Sophie enjoyed the children's books her father brought home. This made Jan think about illustrating her own books.
This led to her first book, Sunshine, published in 1981. Sunshine was a wordless book. It showed a little girl, based on her own daughter, waking up and getting ready for school. This book won the 1982 Mother Goose Award. It was recognized as the "most exciting newcomer to British children's book illustration." Sunshine was also voted Australian Picture Book of the Year.
After Sunshine, Jan Ormerod created Moonlight in 1982. This was a companion book that followed the same child getting ready for bed. Many of Jan's early books focused on family life. In 1985, she started the Jan Ormerod Baby Book series. These books included Sleeping and Dad's Back. They explored the special bond between a baby and their father.
Later, she created the Jan Ormerod New Baby Book in 1987. This book focused on a child and her pregnant mother. This was similar to Jan's own life when she was expecting her second daughter, Laura. In 1987, she drew pictures for a new edition of J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan. This book was published in 1988.
Even after her marriage ended in 1989, Jan remained good friends with Paul. She stayed in Cambridge, close to her publisher, Walker Books. In the 1980s, she started working closely with writer David Lloyd. He later became the chairman of Walker Books. In 1991, they published a new version of The Frog Prince that she illustrated.
In the 1990s, Jan Ormerod also worked with Penelope Lively on her book Two Bears and Joe. In 2003, she wrote her first book that she did not illustrate herself. This book was called If You're Happy And You Know It!. It was illustrated by Lindsey Gardiner. Jan would work with Lindsey on three more books over the next ten years.
In her later career, Jan started working on books about the Australian Outback. Her 2004 book Lizzie Nonsense was a tribute to her grandmother. It told the story of a young girl growing up in the Outback in the 1890s. The pictures in this book used stronger colors than her usual soft style. It was very popular and won the IBBY Honour Award for illustration.
In 2008, she created Water Witcher. This was another story set in the Australian bush. It followed a small boy during a time of drought. During one of her last visits to Australia, she met Aboriginal writer Boori Monty Pryor. He later became the first Australian Children's Laureate. Jan's drawings of his family dancing led to them working together on the book Shake a Leg. This book won the Australian Prime Minister's Literary Award for Children's Fiction.
Jan Ormerod passed away on January 23, 2013, at the age of 66. She is remembered for her wonderful books and is survived by her two daughters.
Books by Jan Ormerod
- Sunshine (1981) – her first book
- Hairs in the Palm of the Hand (1981) by Jan Mark
- Moonlight (1982)
- Rhymes Around the Day (1983)
- 101 Things to Do with a Baby (1984)
- Sleeping (1985)
- Dad's Back (1985)
- Messy Baby (1985)
- Our Ollie (1986)
- Bend and Stretch (1987)
- This Little Nose (1987)
- Mum's Home (1987)
- Peter Pan (1987) by J. M. Barrie, an edition of Peter and Wendy (1911)
- Sleeping (1988)
- Reading (1988)
- Kitten Day (1989)
- The Saucepan Game (1989)
- The Frog Prince (1991) by David Lloyd, an edition of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale
- When We Went to the Zoo (1991)
- Midnight Pillow Fight (1993)
- Rock-a-Baby (1994)
- Goodbye Mousie (1994) by Robie Harris
- To Baby with Love, Rhymes for Babies (1994)
- Two Bears and Joe (1995) by Penelope Lively
- Ms McDonald had a Class (1998)
- The Story of Chicken Licken (1999)
- A Twist in the Tail: Animal Stories from Around the World (2001) by Mary Hoffman
- Miss Mouse's Day (2001)
- If You're Happy And You Know It! (2003), illustrated by Lindsey Gardiner
- Lizzie Nonsense (2004)
- Emily and Albert (2004) by David Slonim
- When an Elephant Comes to School (2005)
- The Buffalo Storm (2007) by Katherine Applegate
- Whoosh Around the Mulberry Bush (2007), illustrated by Lindsey Gardiner
- Ballet Sisters: The Duckling and the Swan (2007)
- Ballet Sisters: The Newest Dancer (2008)
- Water Witcher (2008)
- Molly and Her Dad (2008) by Carol Thompson
- Over in the Clover (2009), illustrated by Lindsey Gardiner
- Maudie and Bear (2010), illustrated by Freya Blackwood
- Itsy-bitsy Babies (2010) by Margaret Wild
- Itsy-bitsy Animals (2011) by Margaret Wild
- The Animal Bop Won't Stop! (2011), illustrated by Lindsey Gardiner
- Shake a Leg (2011) by Boori Monty Pryor
- The Baby Swap (2015), illustrated by Andrew Joyner
