Lane Smith (illustrator) facts for kids

Lane Smith, a famous children's book artist and writer.

Lane Smith (born August 25, 1959) is an American artist and writer who creates amazing children's books. He is famous for his unique and fun drawings, and for telling stories that can be both funny and thoughtful. Some of his well-known books include Grandpa Green and The Stinky Cheese Man. He has won many important awards for his work, like the Kate Greenaway Medal and the Caldecott Honor.

Lane Smith's Early Life and Art Journey

Lane Smith was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but he grew up in Corona, California. When he was young, he often traveled to Tulsa. These trips, especially along Route 66, gave him ideas for his art. He likes to mix different kinds of art styles in his work.

His high school art teacher, Dan Baughman, encouraged him to study art. Lane went to the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. To help pay for school, he even worked as a janitor at Disneyland! While he was still a student, he drew pictures for newspapers like L.A. Weekly and for a punk magazine called No Mag. He also designed album covers for music bands like Oingo Boingo. After graduating in 1983, he moved to New York City. There, he drew for many popular magazines, including TIME, Sports Illustrated, and The New York Times.

Lane Smith is married to Molly Leach. She is a talented book designer and has designed almost all of Lane's award-winning books.

Amazing Children's Books by Lane Smith

Lane Smith is best known for his popular and award-winning children's books. His art is special because he uses many different materials. He uses oil paint, pen and ink, pencils, watercolors, and even digital art. His drawings often have cool textures and look very experimental.

He once shared his thoughts about art, saying he likes artists who try new styles with every book. He believes it's good to experiment, just like kids who aren't afraid to mix paints or splatter ink. For his book The Stinky Cheese Man, he even mixed oil paint with water-based varnishes. This made the paint bubble up and create unique textures!

Books Written and Illustrated by Lane Smith

Lane Smith has written and illustrated many of his own books. Some of his most famous ones include:

• It's a Book (2010) – This book was a New York Times bestseller for over six months and has been translated into more than 28 languages!
• The Happy Hocky Family (1996)
• John, Paul, George & Ben (2006)
• Grandpa Green (2011) – This book won a Caldecott Honor.
• Return to Augie Hobble (2015) – This was his first novel for middle schoolers.

Books Illustrated by Lane Smith for Other Writers

Lane Smith has also illustrated books for many other famous authors.

Working with Jon Scieszka

He has worked a lot with writer Jon Scieszka. They met through their wives in the late 1980s. Together, they created several best-selling and award-winning books. Their two most popular books are:

• The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! (1989)
• The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (1992)

Both of these books were named among the 100 best picture books of all time by TIME magazine and School Library Journal. Lane Smith also illustrated some books in Jon Scieszka's The Time Warp Trio series.

Illustrations for Other Authors

Lane Smith has also drawn pictures for books by other well-known writers, such as:

• Dr. Seuss and Jack Prelutsky for Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!
• Roald Dahl for an edition of James and the Giant Peach
• Jory John for Penguin Problems and Giraffe Problems
• Judith Viorst for Lulu and the Brontosaurus

Lane Smith's Awards and Other Creative Work

Lane Smith has received many awards for his amazing contributions to children's literature. Some of his top honors include:

• The Kate Greenaway Medal in 2017 for There Is a Tribe of Kids.
• Two Caldecott Honor awards for The Stinky Cheese Man (1992) and Grandpa Green (2011).
• Five New York Times Best Illustrated Book awards.
• Lifetime achievement awards from the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art (2012) and the Society of Illustrators (2014).

Besides books, Lane Smith has also worked on movies! He was a designer for the 1996 Disney movie adaptation of James and the Giant Peach. He also helped with designs for Disney and Pixar's Monsters, Inc. and the movie How the Grinch Stole Christmas!. Lane Smith even wrote and directed his own short film called Water Ride in 1994.

Books by Lane Smith

Here is a list of some of the books Lane Smith has created.

As Writer and Illustrator

As Illustrator

Written by Jon Scieszka

Lane Smith also illustrated some books in Jon Scieszka's The Time Warp Trio series of novels.

By other writers