Etch-A-Sketch

Today I experienced Art. First, I bought one of those etch-a-sketch pads that pulls bits of magnet up to the surface with a pen. I bought this for two reasons 1)It is a Tangled etch-a-sketch, so when I am done experiencing art, I can then give it to my 2 year old niece and maintain my title of Favorite Aunt. 2) Garth Williams, the illustrator of Charlotte's Web, created many sketches for E.B. White, so instead of picking up a pen and paper, I picked up an etch-a-sketch to practice on.

Garth Williams illustrated not only Charlotte's Web but also Stuart Little. However, his work was not limited to these two stories. He illustrated for multiple authors, most of which we have all probably read, and did not realize Williams was the common artist for all of the texts.

The original sketches from Charlotte's Web were recently auctioned off last October. Williams kept all of his original sketches in his personal files, and after his death in 1996, the originals were kept safe in a bank vault. For fourteen years they remained locked away, but the cover art and all but two of the 46 interior illustrations were predicted to be auctioned for $30,000 for the cover and $12,000 for each single illustration.

While I read the text, I remembered why elementary school is so great--picture books. Charlotte's Web is littered with colored sketches that bring the text to life. I choose a few of my favorites to share with you:

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This picture depicts one of the most entertaining adventures of Wilbur when, while trying to impress Farmer Zuckerman, he enlists the help of Templeton to help him fly.

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If you have read my previous post on bottle feeding animals, then you will understand why this picture makes me smile. I think it is the epitome of summers on a farm.


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I surprised myself when I saw this illustration and liked it. I've previously said that I do not like spiders, but I took a moment to study this illustration, and an appreciation for the cleverness of spiders developed. Charlotte's web is a simple pinwheel web, yet she was never taught how to weave a web or what method works best. She was born with the instinct, and that is something to appreciate.