There the Wild Things Are

While perusing the blogosphere I came across a site that warms my heart. www.terribleyelloweyes.com is a collection of works by various artist that center around the children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak. The site is a delightful collection of reworkings of the classic art from this childhood favorite, and especially relevant with the recent release of the motion picture version directed by Spike Jones. 

This book takes a lot from its minimalist writing combined with rich textural illustrations. It is really  treat for the eyes and what keeps it relevant today.

The importance of this book and the imact it has had on many American childhoods can be seen in the passionate and loving works from this site. Among the many, many fantastic works on the site this particular one jumped out at me.

 Image from Terrible Yellow Eyes, also Robin Joseph

This work from Robin Joseph is a beautiful piece.  I love this work because it is celebration of not only this particular story but of childhood itself. The simplistic abstraction of the form of Max, the main character, is set off by the intricate working of the "wild thing". This is not only a question of shape but the entirety of treatment. Max's form is is completed with minimal shading and little detail. The contrast with the other figure is almost shocking. The first thing one can point out is the drastic change is color treatment. The rich tones of the the the wild thing are highlighted with a intricate almost textural line work.

The detail of the works as a ground to the lighter simpler figure of Max. Despite the texture the wild things deep color causes it to fade back again the smaller figure of Max. The work highlights these differences forcing the eye to focus first on the small light space of the figure. From there the detailed lines leading out of the crown into those of the ground image moves the eyes outwards and around the work. Eventually a psychic line connects the wild things face back to the figure of Max.

The beauty of the work lies in its simple use of high contrast. It works to intrigue the eye and keep interest in the work. The overall design helps to re-enforce the general sense of closeness to the work. It is a very intimate work and all the aspects of it work to reinforce that.  An amazing tribute and a touching work that brings me back, if only for a moment, to my childhood.