Mexicolor: The Spirit of Mexican Design

Mexicolor captures the bold spirit of South-of-the-border design. Photographer Melba Levick, artist Masako Takahasi, and writer Tony Cohan dare you to splash brilliant fuchsia on conservative white walls and adorn a kitchen with hand-painted pottery and turquoise tiles. From weavings to murals, doorways to patios, Mexicolor shows how the daring decorator can turn a plain home into a work of art. by Darryl Dexter
It's hard to imagine a world without children's books. The genre, as we know it has been around for more than a century. And while, yes, the stories are unforgettable, the covers are often as memorable the tales spun inside.

Some of our happiest childhood memories come wrapped inside our first children's book, and From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss will no doubt bring those memories flooding back. Remember your first Curious George book, or learning to read Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose? What about Charlotte's Web or coming along with Eloise on her latest mischievous adventure?

Collectors of these timeless treasures will appreciate the more than 100 full-color front-cover reproductions of the books they had as children, or of the books they wish to add to their inventories. Noncollectors will find it a sentimental joy.

by Clarissa Cruz
Long before marketers of Rugrats and Teletubbies regaled tykes with their glossy wares, the kiddie-book industry wasn't averse to generating a little spin of its own. Dr. Seuss, for instance, was convinced that cover characters should make eye contact with buyers to give readers the sense that they know us and...are part of the experience. Some covers like 1958's The Rabbits' Wedding, sparked controversy (the illustration depicted a white rabbit and a black rabbit getting hitched). Darling sprinkles these and other fascinating tidbits throughout his book, elevating From Mother Goose beyond mere pretty-book status.

If you really want to judge a book by its cover, you'll find a century's worth of covers to choose from in Harold Darling's From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss: Children's Book Covers 1860-1960. Chronicling the evolution of children's book-cover design from the days of plain ol' Jack (you know, as in the guy who built the house) to Horton, the egg-hatching elephant, Darling's book lavishes attention on this often ignored art form. Special chapters highlight series books, shaped books and the Mother Goose empire. The book appropriately wraps up with a brief discussion of back-cover design, complete with exclusive derriere shots of Raggedy Andy.

by Ilene Cooper
Darling, who has collected children's books for more than 30 years, draws from his own holdings to survey the art of cover illustration. The text is organized chronologically with chapters for each decade from the 1850s through the 1950s. A brief introduction to each chapter discusses trends in book and cover design evident in the selections that follow. The focus here is on the art itself: the more than 200 jackets displayed include work by such celebrated children's illustrators as Edward Ardizzone, Randolph Caldecott, Walter Crane, and Maurice Sendak. In addition to the chronological survey, Darling includes some fascinating thematic chapters, such as one comparing multiple covers of the same story ( Hansel and Gretel, for example). This visually stunning survey will be a browsing delight for anyone with an interest in children's-book illustration.

Mexicolor captures the bold spirit of South-of-the-border design. Photographer Melba Levick, artist Masako Takahasi, and writer Tony Cohan dare you to splash brilliant fuchsia on conservative white walls and adorn a kitchen with hand-painted pottery and turquoise tiles. From weavings to murals, doorways to patios, Mexicolor shows how the daring decorator can turn a plain home into a work of art. by Darryl Dexter
It's hard to imagine a world without children's books. The genre, as we know it has been around for more than a century. And while, yes, the stories are unforgettable, the covers are often as memorable the tales spun inside.

Some of our happiest childhood memories come wrapped inside our first children's book, and From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss will no doubt bring those memories flooding back. Remember your first Curious George book, or learning to read Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose? What about Charlotte's Web or coming along with Eloise on her latest mischievous adventure?

Collectors of these timeless treasures will appreciate the more than 100 full-color front-cover reproductions of the books they had as children, or of the books they wish to add to their inventories. Noncollectors will find it a sentimental joy.

by Clarissa Cruz
Long before marketers of Rugrats and Teletubbies regaled tykes with their glossy wares, the kiddie-book industry wasn't averse to generating a little spin of its own. Dr. Seuss, for instance, was convinced that cover characters should make eye contact with buyers to give readers the sense that they know us and...are part of the experience. Some covers like 1958's The Rabbits' Wedding, sparked controversy (the illustration depicted a white rabbit and a black rabbit getting hitched). Darling sprinkles these and other fascinating tidbits throughout his book, elevating From Mother Goose beyond mere pretty-book status.

If you really want to judge a book by its cover, you'll find a century's worth of covers to choose from in Harold Darling's From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss: Children's Book Covers 1860-1960. Chronicling the evolution of children's book-cover design from the days of plain ol' Jack (you know, as in the guy who built the house) to Horton, the egg-hatching elephant, Darling's book lavishes attention on this often ignored art form. Special chapters highlight series books, shaped books and the Mother Goose empire. The book appropriately wraps up with a brief discussion of back-cover design, complete with exclusive derriere shots of Raggedy Andy.

by Ilene Cooper
Darling, who has collected children's books for more than 30 years, draws from his own holdings to survey the art of cover illustration. The text is organized chronologically with chapters for each decade from the 1850s through the 1950s. A brief introduction to each chapter discusses trends in book and cover design evident in the selections that follow. The focus here is on the art itself: the more than 200 jackets displayed include work by such celebrated children's illustrators as Edward Ardizzone, Randolph Caldecott, Walter Crane, and Maurice Sendak. In addition to the chronological survey, Darling includes some fascinating thematic chapters, such as one comparing multiple covers of the same story ( Hansel and Gretel, for example). This visually stunning survey will be a browsing delight for anyone with an interest in children's-book illustration.

Mexicolor captures the bold spirit of South-of-the-border design. Photographer Melba Levick, artist Masako Takahasi, and writer Tony Cohan dare you to splash brilliant fuchsia on conservative white walls and adorn a kitchen with hand-painted pottery and turquoise tiles. From weavings to murals, doorways to patios, Mexicolor shows how the daring decorator can turn a plain home into a work of art. by Darryl Dexter
It's hard to imagine a world without children's books. The genre, as we know it has been around for more than a century. And while, yes, the stories are unforgettable, the covers are often as memorable the tales spun inside.

Some of our happiest childhood memories come wrapped inside our first children's book, and From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss will no doubt bring those memories flooding back. Remember your first Curious George book, or learning to read Thidwick the Big Hearted Moose? What about Charlotte's Web or coming along with Eloise on her latest mischievous adventure?

Collectors of these timeless treasures will appreciate the more than 100 full-color front-cover reproductions of the books they had as children, or of the books they wish to add to their inventories. Noncollectors will find it a sentimental joy.

by Clarissa Cruz
Long before marketers of Rugrats and Teletubbies regaled tykes with their glossy wares, the kiddie-book industry wasn't averse to generating a little spin of its own. Dr. Seuss, for instance, was convinced that cover characters should make eye contact with buyers to give readers the sense that they know us and...are part of the experience. Some covers like 1958's The Rabbits' Wedding, sparked controversy (the illustration depicted a white rabbit and a black rabbit getting hitched). Darling sprinkles these and other fascinating tidbits throughout his book, elevating From Mother Goose beyond mere pretty-book status.

If you really want to judge a book by its cover, you'll find a century's worth of covers to choose from in Harold Darling's From Mother Goose to Dr. Seuss: Children's Book Covers 1860-1960. Chronicling the evolution of children's book-cover design from the days of plain ol' Jack (you know, as in the guy who built the house) to Horton, the egg-hatching elephant, Darling's book lavishes attention on this often ignored art form. Special chapters highlight series books, shaped books and the Mother Goose empire. The book appropriately wraps up with a brief discussion of back-cover design, complete with exclusive derriere shots of Raggedy Andy.

by Ilene Cooper
Darling, who has collected children's books for more than 30 years, draws from his own holdings to survey the art of cover illustration. The text is organized chronologically with chapters for each decade from the 1850s through the 1950s. A brief introduction to each chapter discusses trends in book and cover design evident in the selections that follow. The focus here is on the art itself: the more than 200 jackets displayed include work by such celebrated children's illustrators as Edward Ardizzone, Randolph Caldecott, Walter Crane, and Maurice Sendak. In addition to the chronological survey, Darling includes some fascinating thematic chapters, such as one comparing multiple covers of the same story (Hansel and Gretel, for example). This visually stunning survey will be a browsing delight for anyone with an interest in children's-book illustration.

Masako Takahashi is a much-exhibited artist and photographer who divides her time between Venice, California, and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

Melba Levick has published more than 40 photography books on travel, architecture, and design, including Mexicolor (0-8118-1893-4) and Mexicasa (0-8118-2806-9). She lives in Los Angeles and Paris.