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Commentary on the art of charles mikolaycak

Judith Johnson, Ph.D. University of Minnesota

 

INTRODUCTION

From the Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman, published in 1967, to The Hero of Bremen, published in 1993, Charles Mikolaycak has delighted children and adults alike with his exquisitely designed and articulated illustrations. As a teacher of design, I see in Mikolaycak’s work a great resource for both teachers of illustration and for prospective illustrators. Much can be learned from studying his drawings. I hope this commentary will enlighten and stimulate you to learn more about the work of this remarkable artist.

In the commentary that follows I will discuss the general manner in which Charles Mikolaycak worked. We can learn about his process by examining the photographs he frequently used for reference and the thumbnail sketches he made to work out his compositional problems—what he tried, what he discarded, and what he ultimately kept.

I will then discuss the final illustrations. When I ask my students to reflect on an illustrator’s work, I ask them to consider four things: Content, Composition, Color, and Control of the medium.

 

1. Content: Naming the principal items or “things” in the drawing is the first part of understanding content. There might be a man, a woman, a tree, or a building. We look at three levels within the illustration, the foreground (the plane closest to the viewer), the middle ground (the next plane in the drawing), and finally the background (that area farthest away from the viewer) to find where these items are placed.

The second part to understanding content is to put it into a cultural context. The man and woman may be clad in costumes that appear to be from the Middle Ages. They might look well dressed rather than in rags. The buildings might have onion domes, indicating that the city could be Russian or Eastern-European. We read clues from the illustration, such as the architecture and clothing, to help us put it in a cultural context.

The final part of understanding content is to put the drawing into an emotional context. For example, the tree branches might be bare. This could mean that it is dead, or that it is late fall or winter, but it might also indicate sadness or death in the story. If the branches are blowing wildly in the wind, it might bespeak violence in the story. The demeanor of the people will also give us some understanding into the illustration’s emotional content. Are they standing? Are they lying down? Do they appear robust or sickly? Sad or happy? Without using the text, one should still be able to “read” the illustration.

 

2. Composition: An illustration is “composed” like a piece of music. In the case of a drawing, the lines are the notes and melodic phrases. We usually ask first, is the drawing symmetrical (the same on both sides) or asymmetrical (different, but balanced on either side)? If it is asymmetrical—and most of Mikolaycak’s illustrations fall into this category—how does he balance the work?

 

How do the lines in the illustration encourage us to move our eyes through the piece? Usually we “read” an illustration from left to right, much as we read the pages in a book, except we generally begin at the center of the left-hand side or lower left-hand side of the drawing. A good illustrator often keeps us visually engaged by encouraging our gaze to move in a slightly oval path in which we go back into the work and move through it again and again, noticing something new each time. A focal point is a place in the drawing that we return to over and over again. Usually it is something that stands out from its surroundings, such as a face or a pattern.

 

Next, there is the illustrator’s use of positive and negative space. Positive space normally consists of the “things” or objects in the drawing and the negative space is the “air” in and around those things. How does the illustrator use space to his best advantage? Mikolaycak often uses negative space to portray positive space. In the drawing of Judith in Holerfones’ tent, from Signs and Wonders, Tales From the Old Testament (1981), the tent is actually represented by negative space. We know it is there because we see Judith, in her terror, trying to get out, pushing against it. It covers part of her face as if to smother her. We can almost feel the claustrophobia!

 

In composition, we study the four Gestalt Grouping Principles: proximity, similarity, continuation, and closure. Gestalt means “wholeness” or “unity.” A good illustrator may use some or all of these. When one places objects in close proximity to each other, they have more visual importance and we see them as connected. When shapes (or lines, or colors, or values) in a drawing are similar, they have more visual importance. When lines or shapes repeat (continue) across a page in a pattern, they have greater visual impact. And finally, when an artist leaves the edge of a figure unfinished, our eye tends to “close” the shape, and we are forced to consider it, just as we may remember an advertising jingle in which the last word is left out.

 

We ask ourselves, are any or all of these gestalt principles used in the illustration? Does the illustrator clump things together? Repeat lines? Use patterns? Or does he leave portions of the outlines of an object not drawn, so we can “finish” it with our gaze?

 

Next we look at the picture plane, the imaginary or real line that surrounds the illustration. Is it full(lots of things are close together in the drawing)? Or sparse (few things, far apart in the drawing)? Is the picture within the plane or does it break out of it (are there parts of objects which extend beyond the picture plane)? What is the shapeof thepicture plane (is it rectangular, square, round, oval, or shaped by the objects within it)?

 

What is the quality of the lines in the illustration? Are they thick, thin, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, straight or curvilinear? A thick vertical line might represent strength (think of a tall oak tree). A thin, curvilinear line might appear feminine and lyrical (think of a flower stem, bending in the wind). A diagonal line might appear visually startling (think of lightning). Does the artist use implied line? Implied line happens when a line begins in one object, such as an arm pointing, and continues in another object such as the crest of a hill. Our eyes do not see two different lines, but one continuous line is “implied.” Implied lines can also be seen in the combined edges of things, especially when the artist ends linear items such as hair or tree limbs in one continuous curved line. We see an

implied line in the cover for The Great Wolf and The Good Woodsman (1967) in which the hair and beard of the woodsman make a curved line along with the limbs of a nearby tree. This is an obvious employment of implied line although Mikolaycak’s use of this compositional device is typically more subtle.

 

3. Color: What color compositions does the illustrator use? We think of color as divided into three categories: hue (the name of the color, such as “red”), value (how light or dark the color is, such as in “pink” in which the hue red contains more white, or “maroon” in which a red hue contains more black), and intensity (how bright the color is, how much pigment it contains).

 

Are the colors analogous, with close harmonies (colors close to each other on the Munsell color wheel, such as blue, blue-green, blue-violet)? Are the colors monochromatic (using one color and variations in values)? Do the colors have opposingharmonies (colors opposite on the color wheel, such as red and green)? Do the color combinations have accents (small bits of color that are on opposite sides of the color wheel from the major color)? Some of the most interesting combinations Mikolaycak uses have an analogous color scheme with an opposing accent color. Are the colors highly saturated (bright)? Or low in saturation (dull or pale)? Are the colors light or dark in value (how much black or white is added)? Are the colors naturalistic (found in nature) or expressionistic (indicating a mood)? Is there a light source (can you find shadows)? Are the colors warm (as in the colors of fire: reds, yellows, oranges)? Or are they cool (as in the colors of water: blues, greens, violets)? Or are they a combination of warm and cool?

 

4.Control of the medium: Finally, we discuss whether the illustrator demonstrated adequate control of the medium used. What is the level of their ability? Their virtuosity? If we look at two illustrations from two different periods of an illustrator’s career, can we see improvement or change in the rendering? Control of the medium is more subjective than content, composition and color. We can usually tell, however, if an artist has drawing skill. By just looking at the illustrations, we can gain a sense of visual mastery or lack thereof. Students become more adept at judging an artist’s control of the medium as they become more familiar with his or her work.

 

5. Change: There is a fifth element.Although I will not use this in my commentary, I often refer to it in my classes. “Change” refers to how you are influenced by the artist’s work, or how a change takes place in your own work because you have studied another’s. I must add here too that most of my students feel that Charles Mikolaycak’s work has been a positive influence on their own!

 

We will now look at a cross-section of the work of Charles Mikolaycak. I have chosen work from approximately every two years, from 1967 to 1993. I hope you will be uplifted by Mikolaycak’s superb illustrations and that you will enjoy reading this analysis as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

 

Dr. Judith Johnson

Design Department

College of Human Ecology

University of Minnesota

 

August 2005

 

 

1. Great Wolf and the Good Woodsman (1967)

 

Work discussed: Cover Illustration

(Note: All images are from original studies held in the Kerlan Collection, University of Minnesota Libraries)

 

Process: There were no available photographs or sketches for this illustration.

 

Content: In the foreground we see a man holding a saw. He is dressed in a black tunic and has red hair, a mustache, and full beard. In the middle ground we see a body of water or, because of the snowy ground, perhaps a frozen pond. Reflected in this are a wolf and some trees. In the background we see the actual wolf and trees.

 

Cultural content: From the decoration on the tunic we might suppose that the man is from Europe, probably Russia. He holds a saw so perhaps he is a craftsman or woodsman. The wolf, bare trees and snow tell us that the land is in a northern climate.

 

There is not much psychological content in this piece, other than a peaceful, faraway stare on the face of the man. There is less sense of danger because the wolf is on the other side of the pond.

 

The composition is asymmetrical, with the man on the right side of the drawing and the wolf, trees and pond on the left. The picture-plane is circular with the tops of some of the trees, the edge of the man’s head, beard, and left arm drawn as part of an implied line, defining the right side of the circle.

 

Our eyes might move through this work from the man’s face, down his left shoulder to his hands, up the saw to the trees and the wolf, and then to the reflection, and back up the man’s right arm to his face once more.

 

The most important gestalt grouping principles in this piece are closure (the tops of the trees are unfinished), and similarity of line (in the trees and their reflection, the handle of the saw, and the hair on the man and the wolf). There is also similarity in the negative spaces surrounding the tree branches.

 

Color: The color is for the most part neutral black and white with some gray and brown tones. There is a red-orange accent (the man’s hair) and a smaller blue and yellow accent on his shirt. The accent colors are highly saturated and intensified against the stark black and white.

 

Control: This first work by Charles Mikolaycak shows his love of design. Although it seems abstract, when compared to his later drawings his craftsmanship shows through in the shape of the wolf, the hands, and the artful positioning of the trees. His unique graphic quality, seen in this first book, will become even more sophisticated in later works.

 

 

2. Grimm’s Golden Goose (1969)

 

Work discussed: illustration on page 17

Process: There were no available photographs or sketches for this illustration.

Content: A foreground, middle-ground, and background are all evident in this illustration. In the foreground we see three standing women. Directly behind them is a man on horseback and behind him is a tall, turreted building containing a large arched and curtained entryway. On the second floor is a balcony with tile-covered roof. In the middle-ground a woman walks away from the figures in front. She balances a large basket on her head that presumably contains her washing. Next to her is another tall building adorned with turrets and tiled roof. This building has an arched window on an upper floor with a figure (probably a man) leaning out of it In the background, we have more buildings, perhaps two or three, with more turrets and tiled roofs, and beyond that, sky and clouds.

 

Culturally , this content appears to be a generic European city in the Middle Ages. The tiled roofs might indicate a warmer climate, perhaps Italy. The people appear to be from upper, middle, and lower classes. The women in the foreground are beautifully clad in dresses that seem to be more for leisure than for work. The man on horseback also appears to be expensively dressed. The woman with the basket is probably working class. The person in the window could be from any class; it is difficult to discern from this drawing.

 

Psychologically , we can’t tell much about this drawing, except the illustrator has depicted a bustling city street, full of many layers of society.

 

Composition: This illustration is asymmetrically balanced. The larger building on the right is balanced by three smaller buildings on the left. The three well-dressed women are centered—balanced on either side by the horse and rider to the right, and the woman carrying the basket and man in the window to the left.

 

In this drawing our eyes might move through the piece from a line beginning in the left foot on the woman with the basket, up the line of her tunic, up the arm of the woman in the burnt orange jumper with the white blouse. From there, we may glance over the head of the woman with the white headdress, up the back of man on the horse, over the largest arch in the nearest building. Then we could circle back into the drawing, finally ending with the turrets of the largest building and the clouds beyond.

It should be noted here that everyone reads (scans) a drawing in a slightly different manner. There is no single “correct” way, but this commentary may give you an idea of how to do it. It should also be noted that when the drawing contains people we tend to read their faces first, especially if they are viewed up-close, and again and again (focal point). The woman in the patterned dress is the focal point of this work.

 

Most of the drawing is made up of positive space (things). Negative space (air) is used mostly around the edges, and the picture-plane is determined by the shape of the items nearest the edges. There is a very strong sense that the front leg of the horse is breakingout of the (imaginary) picture-plane.

 

As for the gestalt grouping principles, proximity is perhaps the most employed in this particular drawing. The picture-plane is full and the objects within it appear crowded together. There is similarity, however,in the curvilinear lines of the dresses of the women and the reins of the horse. The architectural features of the buildings have similar lines also, as do the clouds. Continuation is also seen in the pattern in the central woman’s dress (the focal-point of the work), the top part of the curtain, the turrets and tiles on the buildings, the wood on the porch, and in the decoration on the side of the largest building. The closure is in the clouds, where the eye has to “finish” them on either side. One might also say there is closure on the bottom of the drawing where we imagine a street to be (the illustrator has left it as negative space). It might be helpful to mention here that in a double-page spread, such as with this drawing, another form intrudes into the drawing. It is the young man’s cape from the opposite page. I think that the strong contrast between this cape and the white of the page makes our eye begin reading this illustration from the lower left-hand side.

 

The lines in this drawing are for the most part a combination of curvilinear and vertical. We sense the movement of the figures and clouds and the stability of the buildings. There are many cases of implied line here, one of the strongest being the line on the left side of the largest arch. Do you see how it continues in the line of the man’s dark brown tunic?

 

Color : The color is largely analogous (closely related colors) with medium to medium-high intensity warm colors. The warm shades of reds, oranges, and yellow-oranges are accented by a combination of pastel orange and white found in the faces, hands, and headdresses of the women. The black of the horse also offers accent. In this drawing, the color “accents” (a color that stands out and tends to stop our gaze, usually an opposing color on the color wheel) are accomplished by using both very lightand very dark values and by moving these values through the piece. Sometimes, if you squint your eyes when you look at an illustration, you can more easily “see” the accents.

 

Control: The artist’s control in this piece is obvious. This strong drawing is realistic but slightly stylized, tending toward the elongated, curvilinear, romanticized style used by the Pre-Raphaelite painters of late 19 th century England. We are also reminded of some Art Nouveau drawings of women, although naturalistic forms are not employed here. Mikolaycak’s lines are crisp with a hard edge, and rendered with a deliberateness that shows that he knew what he wanted to do with the figures and could easily accomplish his goals. This illustration beautifully characterizes a hallmark of Mikalaycak’s artistry: a combination of strength and lyricism, a tension between static figures and movement, and a restrained sensuality. These qualitiespermeate his work in general but this drawing in particular.

 

 

 

3. The Boy Who Tried to Cheat Death (1971)

 

Work discussed: illustration spanning pages 3 and 4

Process: There were no available photographs or sketches for this illustration.

 

Content: This illustration, which spans two pages, has a foreground containing the land (with flowers and foliage and a dark shadow that appears to be a rabbit) and path leading up to a bridge. The middle-ground contains the bridge, a boy carrying a cask, and an old man with the backpack. The background consists of mountains and a waterfall.

 

Culturally , if we did not know that the story takes place in Norway, we might guess that it is in some European country in the nineteenth century or earlier. Our clues are the clothing, the mountains and waterfall, and the rustic bridge.

 

Psychologically , this appears to be a drawing of a friendly encounter. The boy tips his hat to the old man, who leans toward the boy as if to better hear what he is saying. Even though the two figures are positioned on a bridge over what appears to be a steep drop to rocks and water, it has a feeling of normalcy and safeness. The only ominous suggestion in the drawing is perhaps the snake-like foliage to the left of the rabbit figure and the looming shadow of the large rabbit itself on the path leading to the bridge.

 

Composition : This illustration is, over-all, asymmetrically balanced. One can see, however, that the focal point (the boy and old man talking together) is in a portion of the drawing that seems, if you look at the two figures and waterfall in the background, to be symmetrically balanced. This “composition within a composition” is easily observed because of the high contrast between the figures and the water. Overall, the rocks, waterfall and figures on the left balance the land forms on the right.

 

In this drawing, our eyes tend to move from the man and boy on the bridge—they are human and rendered in high contrast, so we look at them first—down the bridge, to the path (with foliage) to the shadow of the rabbit, to the heavy line of the snake-like foliage, up to the waterfall and down the other side, up the footing of the bridge (it looks like a cross) and back to the people and around again.

There is good use of both positive and negative space. The positive space is found in the people, bridge, rocks, path, land and foliage; the negative space is the air over the mountains and the water, although only a few vertical lines tell us it is water.

 

The picture-plane is made up of the edges of the mountains and land on the right side and bordered by the end of the page on the left side. We call this a “shaped” picture plane.

 

The most important gestalt grouping principles in this drawing are similarity and continuation. The rounded, amorphous forms of the land, foliage, water, and rocks are stylized. They are so similar in appearance that the land with the white flowers almost seems to be flowing water!

 

The repetitive pattern in the flowers and foliage unifies the work and the leaf-like foliage brings to mind the papyrus plants seen in Egyptian tomb paintings.

Curvilinear and vertical lines are the primary lines used in this piece, although the horizontal line of the bridge railing and the strong horizontal line of the boy’s arm are important to the drawing. I think we sense the tension between the man-made rational world (the bridge, the people on it) and the out of control natural (intuitive) world with its crashing water, jutting rocks, lava-like landscape forms, snake-like figure, prolific foliage and the rabbit figure which we may assume is prolific.

 

We see use of implied line by looking down the back of the old man; his form goes into the guard rail on the fence, continues on the snake-like figure, and around to the right. Another more subtle implied line is, of course, the right-hand ear of the rabbit figure, which is continued in a line on the path.

 

Color: The color is primarily mono-chromatic (one color with shades and tints of that color). Mikolaycak has chosen green for his palette, with several shades from mint-green to a deep bronze green. His combined use of very subtle color differences, along with high value contrasts, compels us to pay attention.

 

Control: This piece is an odd mixture of very controlled drawing (the man, the boy, the bridge) with a more expressionistic view of nature. The foliage contained in the rounded forms reminds us of the repeated patterns in a Gustav Klimt painting. The man, the boy, and the bridge are obviously well drawn. But the land forms are free-flowing. If it weren’t for some flowers and foliage, these forms could be almost anything. The artist manipulates our eyes by the use of texture in the foreground and middle-ground, and with almost no detail in the background. There is a sensation of grandness in this illustration, with its sweep of land, mountains and water, coupled perhaps with awareness of the insignificance of man in such a setting.

 

 

 

4. How Wilka Went to Sea And Other Tales from West of the Urals (1975)

 

Work discussed: illustration on page 59

Process: Mikolaycak made a preliminary thumbnail sketch for this drawing, rendered in pencil on tracing paper. Many artists’ thumbnails are rough sketches that are more gestural than anything. By this I mean they use repeated lines, quickly drawn, in which the artist suggests shapes and layouts, showing the “action” of the illustration rather than a finished product. Not so with Mikalaycak.

 

Mikolaycak’s thumbnails are near perfect replicas of his final illustrations. If you examine the sketch closely, however, you will notice some minor differences. In the final drawing, the sleeve of the old woman is fuller and more patterned, her neckline has a tie, her skirt has a patterned area in front, and her hair is more controlled. The artist has removed the old woman’s earrings but added warts to her nose. In the final drawing of the young girl, the pattern in the sleeve of her blouse has changed, a pattern has been added to the front of her skirt, and her hair is given more detail.

 

In the middle-ground of the final drawing, Mikolaycak made the road less detailed than in his sketch. In the background he added a dark tone to emphasize the fence and he depicted the pine trees more realistically. To sum up, in his final rendering Mikolaycak included more realistic shapes, added shading for emphasis and dramatic effect, and put in some ethnic patterns.

 

Content: The foreground in this drawing contains two figures: a young girl in front with an unlined face and dark hair and an old woman behind her with white or gray hair, a lined face, and a nose with warts. The middle-ground is comprised of a curved path alongside a fence, and in the background we find only pine trees and a darkening sky.

 

Culturally , we might assume once again that this drawing takes place in an earlier time (the handmade fence) and in Europe (possible Russia, given the cut and decoration of the clothing).

Psychologically, one thing seems to dominate the content of this piece. It is the contrast between the innocence of the young girl (eyes cast down, holding her braid) and the shrewd, somewhat sinister look of the old woman (she holds a large walking stick that almost looks like a femur). This contrast sets up a tension in this drawing that compels the viewer to ask, “What is going to happen here? Will this girl be safe?” At first glance, the illustration brings to mind the wicked witch in the Brothers’ Grimm story of Hansel and Gretel. The girl holding her braid reminds us of the captured Rapunzel in that story.

 

Composition: This piece is a combination of symmetrical and asymmetrical balance. Some symmetry is seen in the placing of the two figures side-by-side in the middle of the picture plane. Asymmetry is seen in the curving path and fence on the right side of the drawing, reaching up to the trees in the background.

 

Our eyes might move through this piece by entering it in lower left-hand corner, beginning with the dark skirt of the old woman, moving up the apron and the girl’s arm to her braid, pausing at the faces of the two, up the path and fence, and to the trees and sky. From there we could enter the drawing once again by noticing the old woman’s arm holding a large walking-stick, then her face and flowing hair, and then over to the girl’s face and her hair, to the decorations on her blouse, and then to the decorations on the old woman’s blouse.

The negative space indicates land. The positive space is the women, road, fence and trees. It should be noted here that in a good composition, the outlines of the positive spaces and negative spaces should hold equal interest and work in tandem with each other. Notice how the negative space curves like a giant finger around the two heads, calling attention to them? It emphasizes the figures by curving over them and by having a high value contrast to them. If you stretch your imagination a bit, you might also see the thumb of that giant hand, coming up on the bottom right-side of the picture-plane, as if the illustrator is “holding” the two figures in his hand.

 

Remember that Mikolaycak often uses negative space to represent positive space. This picture plane is bordered by a thin, maroon-colored, rectangular line.

 

The most important gestalt grouping principles in this drawing are proximity and continuation. The close positioning of the old woman and girl make them almost one shape, giving them importance. The repetitive patterns in the blouse of each figure and the skirt of the girl, as well as in their hair, draw further attention to the figures. The lines of the fence and the trees are also repeated. The use of repetition becomes more effective by making the shapes similar, not exact.

Curvilinear lines are the most prominent in this piece, but there are some vertical lines (the girl’s skirt and the fence) and some diagonal lines (the slanted positioning of the figures, the edges on the bottom of the girl’s blouse, and the branches on the trees).

The most interesting use of implied line in this illustration is the way the old woman’s hair seems to flow behind the girl, into the shape of the road. It seems to make her “part of the land” and therefore a more powerful entity.

 

Color: The color in this piece is monochromatic. Mikolaycak has chosen for his palette a medium to low-value (more black and gray then white) low-saturated red (not much pigment). The illustration has a soft rose-colored look, emphasizing the blush of the young girl, and making the old woman a bit less frightening in appearance, although her dark eyes under heavy brows do lend a sinister air. The artist added a dark tone behind the fence, perhaps to indicate approaching night, but he lightened it somewhat behind the trees (perhaps a sunset?).

 

Control: Mikolaycak controls not only the lines in this piece, but our feelings about the illustration, by the clever use of subtle clues. The bone-like stick, the old woman’s hair going into the road, the girl with the Rapunzel-like pose who seems “captured” by the old woman—all set a portentous tone that complements the story line. His drawing is done with great virtuosity and his control of our thoughts about this piece (think about the other “old woman/young woman” stories we have known) is crafted in such a way as to make us believe and imagine in our mind’s eye. In good illustrations, we have meaning; in exceptional illustrations, we have multi-layeredmeanings. This is what Charles Mikolaycak so often gives us.

 

 

5. The Surprising Things Maui Did (1979)

 

Work discussed: illustration that spans pages 6 and 7

Process: I did not find thumbnails, sketches, or posed photos for this drawing, but I did find some newspaper clippings, post cards, and photos of young men that Mikolaycak might have used in lieu of posed models for Maui.

Content: There are so many layers to this illustration that it is difficult to identify “foreground, middle-ground, and background.” If we limit ourselves to these three layers, however, we have in the foreground a young man swimming with eleven fish of various sizes through waves and two large conch shells. In the middle-ground there are clouds, more waves, another shell and two fish. In the background there is a woman with a baby, a waterfall and a mountain or cave.

 

The cultural content of this piece is Polynesian. The dark tones of skin, the hair and sarong of the woman, the garb of the young man, the shells, the waves, the fish, the waterfall, the very lushness of forms—all indicate a south sea island setting.

Psychological content is more difficult to read. Without using the story as reference, one sees a mother and child and a young man swimming. On the face of it, we might assume that he is a young father searching for food for his family. The fish indicate that there is food available, but they seem to be swimming with the young man, rather than being a source for food. The shells are important items here, larger than life and with their openings toward the viewer. Because we see a young woman with an infant, and all the forms seems to flow from her, a shell could subliminally represent a birth canal. The water, too, could represent birth.

Actually, in the story the young mother is desperate because they are starving. She puts her infant in the sea and tells the sea to care for him. Directly under the mother and child we see a mother fish and baby fish swimming together, and under the young man we see eleven more fish of various sizes swimming together. I saw this as a subtle reminder that “it takes a village to raise a child.”

Composition: Because the drawing spans two pages, both pages must be viewed as a single composition. It is asymmetrical, with the young man, the fish, the water, and the clouds balancing the shells, waves, and the mother and child in front of the mountain.

Our eyes move in a different manner through this work. Instead of moving in an oval, we move horizontally back and forth across the piece from the middle to the right side, then to the left and back again to the right. We see the strong form of the young man first: his body, then his face, and then his extended arm pushing through the water. We move back through the shells and waves, to the mother and baby, almost silhouetted against the dark mountain. We might notice the fish last, as a delightful surprise.

The primary focal point here is unusual also. We generally see human faces as the most important in a work of art, but since the faces in this piece are turned slightly away from us and in such limited contrast to their surroundings, we would probably look at the white cloth around the young man’s waist first. It is in high contrast to its dark surroundings and leads us into the torso of the young man and from there to his outstretched arm. In this manner, the young man’s body becomes the focal point.

The use of positive and negative space in this work looks as if the entire drawing was a cut out (as indeed it was, the original drawing was cut out and glued to white mat board). There are flowing outlines that move across the outside of the work, imitating the lines of the mountain, shells, waves, and fish. Some smaller negative spaces are cut out of the positive space, indicating flowing water and fish fins.

The most important gestalt principles used in this piece are proximity (everything is close and overlapped) and similarity (shells, water, fish and human figures all have similar lines). There is some continuation (pattern) as the shapes of the waves repeat.

The picture plane in this work flows across the page like spilled water, seeming to flow on to the next page of the book. It is full and even visually confusing at times. One has to look at this illustration a long time before seeing everything in it!

 

The quality of lines in this work are mostly horizontal except for the vertical waterfall that outlines the woman and child, and certainly curvilinear. The most interesting implied lines in this piece are the two waves on the upper-left page; they seem to grow out of the young man’s legs, almost as if he were a “mer-man.” (Remember the “multi-layered meanings?”) His extended arm as part of the water is also utilized.

 

The color of the original drawing is more jewel-like and brilliant than the color printed in the book, but it is close. The color combination is an intense, attention-grabbing mix of primarytriad colors using reds, yellows, blues and even greens with some black and white accents. There are some analogous tones, but the general look of the piece is that of the triad.

 

Mikolaycak also used some kind of corrugated paper on which to do his originals, perhaps pastel paper. The striated lines show up more in the book illustrations than in the original drawing. One wonders if this was intended or just one of those “accidents” that sometimes happens in printing? The colors are a good mix of warm and cool—warm-colored people, shells, fish, and cool-colored water.

 

Control in this piece is unusual. The unevenness of the corrugated lines give it a “dead sea scroll-like” quality, as if it were a drawing found among very old parchments or on tapa cloth. The rendering of the young man is flawless, as are the waves, fish, shells, etc. The drawing of the young mother and child is a bit more primitive, almost Gaugin-esque. Note the difference between her face and Maui’s. The waves are drawn with a controlledenergy that reminds us of classic Japanese prints.

 

 

6. I Am Joseph (1980)

 

Work discussed: illustration on page 3, opposite the first page of text

Process: Fortunately, the Kerlan Collection archives hold Mikolaycak’s black and white photographs, over a hundred of them, which were used to create I Am Joseph. Models were posed in the attitudes of his characters to aid the artist in drawing the numerous figures for this book. He photographed them in his studio, not in staged setting, so we can assume the background was added after the figures were drawn. From these photos he made black andwhite pencil drawings the same size as his final pieces, and from there he created the stunning colored-pencil illustrations found in the book.

The content in the finished illustration is a young man (we see his head, hands, upper torso and part of one leg), an old man (we see only his head and part of one hand), and a portion of the inside of a tent-like dwelling (we see a billowing ceiling and draped walls). There is a coat on the young man and a basket visible behind him.

 

Even without reading the text it would be easy for someone to put this drawing into cultural context. Between the tent-like structure and the head-covering of the old man, we would place it in Biblical times. The young man, however, may be more difficult to discern. If we take him out of the drawing and look at him alone, he could be a hippie with a headband and colorful coat! The unusual design on the coat (full of symbols: the lion of Judah, suns, Egyptian papyrus flowers, and some designs that appear more European in nature), is not the one we normally see in reference to the “coat of many colors,” which is typically portrayed as striped. Mikolaycak used “artist’s license” in drawing the garment and included symbols that foreshadowed the rest of the story. Even the patterns on the tent are more whimsical than historically accurate!

 

As for the emotional content of this drawing, we notice the concern evident in the father’s face as he watches his young son break free from the tent ( the bonds of family constraints?), and the son’s pride as he dons the colorful coat.

 

The composition of this piece is asymmetrical, with the figure of Joseph slightly off-center and to the left. His body leans toward the left side of the drawing, but his right hand points toward the right side of the drawing, adding visual importance and weight to that side. Above that, we have the head and hand of the older man, Jacob, which tends to balance the work

Our eyes might move through this work from the face of Joseph, down his torso to his hand, up the red edge of the coat to his other hand, then down the tent ceiling to Jacob, up his hand to Joseph’s hand on the ceiling and down again, noticing the decorations on the coat and then the decorations on the tent. The focal point is certainly Joseph’s face, but his arm and hand also capture our immediate attention.

 

Positive and negative space is atypical here since every inch of this drawing is covered with either patterned cloth or flesh. The flesh, which is not patterned, seems to substitute for negative space in this work. Of course we notice it more because it is in contrast to the pattern.

The important gestalt grouping principles are continuation, because of the repetition of patterns, and proximity, due to the closeness of fabric and figures. Similarity of shapes is also evident in the pattern repetition, and in the long, diagonal shapes made by the young man’s body and hands, the folds of fabric in the tent, and the fingers of the old man.

 

The picture plane is full. It has a rectangular shape bordered by a simple geometric frame. It seems to constrict the lavish fabric of the tent and the robust figure of the young man who, pushing at the top of the tent, seems much too large for the space he inhabits.

 

The quality of lines is curvilinear, with a strong curved diagonal line in the opening of the young man’s coat. These lines seem sensuous, not only because of the lush pattern, but because of the manner in which the figure of the young man has been rendered. We see the strong delineation of his face, hair, hands and torso. The open coat shows just a glimpse of naked chest and thigh, giving a titillating glance at a splendid young body.

 

Color: The color combination is warm with cool accents—primarily analogous reds, red-oranges, oranges, yellow-oranges and yellows, with some blue-green, yellow-green, and green accents. The colors are highly saturated in the foreground and less saturated in the background. The values are, for the most part, medium to light with darker values in the young man’s hair, the lining of his coat and the tent in the background. The darker values are used to differentiate the figure of the young man from his surroundings

 

The choice of colors and patterns in this piece is impressionistic. The dyes for such a brilliantly colored coat and the weaving of such a complex design would simply not have been technically available during the actual setting for this ancient story. The light source is from the left, as we can see by the shadows on the young man’s face, neck, and hands.

 

Control:Mikolaycak’s drawing skill is clearly evident. The face and body of both the old man and young man are rendered flawlessly, as are the surroundings. The pose of the young man is unusual and done with such perfection that we can see how valuable the posed photographs were as an aid. The background is similar to a stage set, with clues to the story shown prominently, augmenting the overall design of the piece. The sensuality of the illustrations for I Am Joseph is plain to see, yet different from the lushness of the natural surroundings in The Surprising Things Maui Did. In I Am Joseph we see the partially-clothed bodies of the people in the story and the rooms they inhabited—the sweeping swags of tent ceilings, the curves of baskets and vases, and countless decorations. It initially seems overdone, but when seen in contrast to the rest of the story, it is just right.

 

 

7. Peter and the Wolf (1982)

 

Work discussed: illustration on pages nine and ten

Process: Mikolaycak’s way of working is similar in each book. In his studio he takes black and whitephotos of his models and makes gestural sketches from them. In the photo used for this drawing, we see the figure of the boy but not the old man. He is dressed in a white tunic, belted at the waist, with dark pants and a laced-up shoe. He is posed, leaning, arms folded, on what seems to be a chair. In the eventual illustration, the boy is leaning on a stone fence. The gestural drawing has the boy looking out over a wooden fence instead of a stone wall, and there is a very detailed drawing of the boy in the margin, showing more of his costume, hair, and shoes. In a more finished drawing, done in black and white pencil, he has added the stone wall and such details as patterns in the clothing, facial expressions, and architectural and landscape detail.

Content: In the foreground there is an old man, a gate, and part of a wooden fence with a small carved roof over its entryway. In the middle-ground, there is grass, some flowers, and part of a log cabin with carving on the edge of the roof. We can see a portion of a second-story window. Also in the middle-ground next to the cabin is a stone wall. A boy leans on the wall. The background is comprised of more flowers and trees or bushes.

 

Culturally , because of the clothing of the man, and because of the ornate carving on the edge of the roof of the cabin and entryway, we would most likely place this in Europe, possibly in the nineteenth century or earlier. The long belted tunic of the boy, however, puts the setting in Eastern Europe, probably Russia.

 

Emotionally , we see an older man appearing to close a gate. He has a stern look. The boy gazes out over the stone fence to the world beyond the confines of his yard. His head is lowered on his arm, and his eyes appear as if he is sulking. He seems to be looking far beyond the trees in front of him.

 

Composition: This drawing is asymmetrical. The figure of the old man, along with the gate and the cabin, balance the boy, the stone fence, and the large entryway of the gate. Sometimes an illustrator uses “implied weight” to balance a picture. In this work the stone wall bears the “implied visual weight” of the stones and helps to balance the right side of the picture. The large pole of the entryway also lends balance to the right side of the work. Often in a landscape, an artist will use a large body of water, which we know to be heavy, to balance one side of a composition.

 

Our eyes may move through this piece by looking first at the face of the old man, then at the face of the young boy, then up to the carving on the roof of the cabin, down the side of the building to the fence, and up the entryway pole, to the patterned clothing of both man and boy, and finally to the flowers and trees. Generally, we will look at the faces of people first, then other particulars in the work such as architectural details, clothing patterns, and objects in the landscape like flowers.

 

Because the roof of the entry-way points away from the center of the drawing, we are visually led to the text on page ten. The primary focal point is the old man’s face and the secondary focal point is the boy.

 

The positive space is comprised of the old man, the boy, the cabin, gate, entryway, garden, trees, etc. The negative space is the white paper, representing sky. This illustration, as in other illustrations by Mikolaycak, seems to be cut out and glued onto a white surface. The negative space is made more interesting by the juxtaposition of the sturdy shape of the architectural carvings and the more delicate contours of the leaves on the trees and bushes.

 

The most important gestalt grouping principles in this work are proximity and continuation. The proximity in the overlapping of the figures, the garden, and the cabin give a sense of wholeness and unity to the work, while the patterns in clothing, architectural detail and even in the flowers, leaves, and rock wall, make it visually exciting.

 

The picture plane is full, with the roof of the entryway and some leaves breaking out of the plane on the right side. The shape of the picture plane is determined by the shape of the objects within it.

 

The quality of the lines is a combination of strong vertical lines, with some diagonal ones, in the architectural details, and curvilinear lines in the figures and in nature. There is a juxtaposition of both strength and delicacy in the bulky figure of the old man and the small flowers and leaves behind him. The strong diagonals in the building lead our eye to the text.

 

Color: Because of the dominance of reds and greens, the color composition is one of opposing harmonies or chromatic opposites. When colors are used that are opposite each other on the (Munsell) color wheel—e.g., red and green, blue and orange, yellow and violet—they tend to intensify each other. In this case, the most highlysaturated colors are red-orange and blue-green, which are opposites. We also see some yellow in the hair of the man and boy and in some of the leaves. Dark brown and rust are used in the man’s vest and in the building, but these colors are secondary to the main composition and are used as accents. The colors in this piece are naturalistic (found in nature) and there is an ambient, outdoor light source. The colors are warm with a cool accent (the blue-green on the cabin roof).

 

Control: This would seem to be an easier drawing to execute than many others that Mikolaycak did. Although the old man is portrayed with great skill and the figure of the boy is very believable, much is hidden behind clothing, architectual details, and foliage. In fairness to the artist, the architecture was an important part of this story—the grandfather closed the gate to keep his grandson safe at home—and it certainly gives a Russian “feel” to the illustration. There might have been less foliage used, particularly where the boy was peering over the stone wall, but every artist has his or her own vision of the moment portrayed, and this is Mikolaycak's. Certainly it is delightful.

 

8. Babushka (1984)

 

Work discussed: illustration on pages three and four

Process: Since we are unable to find the original finished drawing in the archives, and only one page of the story board, I can only speak about the photos, a portion of the story board and the full-sized pencil drawing.

 

The small black and white photo used for the illustration is of a woman dressed in a long skirt, peasant blouse, apron and shawl. She is bent forward, sweeping the floor. I assume the photo was taken in Mikolaycak’s studio; he drew in the background later.

 

The difference between the photo and the final drawing is found in Babushka’s hair and clothing. The hair of the model is dark and short; the hair of Babushka is blonde and pulled into braided chignons. The pattern in the model’s clothing is plain, while Babushka’s clothing in the final illustration is patterned. The story board for Babushka is comprised of small, gestural drawings which form the blueprint for the final book. These drawings are four inches by two and a half inches, and include a blocked-out portion for the future inclusion of text. The story board helps the artist keep track of content and to plan the composition. Underneath each drawing are Mikolaycak’s instructions for himself, such as “from here on, babushka wears a scarf” and “Babushka is old and patched, but not weary here.”

 

The full-sized pencil drawing is very similar but not identical to the final illustration. The branches of the large tree that breaks out of the picture plane in the finished illustration are less full, but with more snow on them, and two birch trees have been added on the left side of the illustration. Also in the final illustration a chimney with smoke and a snow covered entrance to a gate was added to the second house, along with a patterned fence. Finally, at the far right side of the final illustration, the smoke from the procession of kings is more diffused than in the pencil drawing.

 

Content: In the foreground is a large tree with bare branches. Snow piles up where the branches meet the tree. Snow flakes in the shape of small white dots fall in the foreground. In the foreground is a snow-covered picket fence. In the middle ground, a young woman sweeps with a broom. She is in front of a small, snow-covered log house with lighted windows and decorated entryway, shutters, and eaves. In the background we see a similar house and another three-tiered building behind that. Also in the background is a night sky with a road and a fence moving toward the back of the picture-plane. There seems to be a light at the very end of the road, as if something was on fire (this is the procession we will see in the next illustration.

 

Cultural content: Without knowing the story, the landscape with the figure of the woman looks as if it could be in eighteenth or nineteenth century Europe. The houses are the generic “cottages” one finds in fairytales, but the woman’s dress is eastern European (flowered shawl, patterns in the apron and skirt). The snowy landscape indicates that the story takes place in a northern climate. Since the houses are close together, we presume it is a village or at least the edge of a town.

 

Emotional Content: At first glance, the illustration seems to have a threatening cast to it. There is a fiery glow at the end of the road (a town burning or soldiers advancing?) reminiscent of the film Gone With the Wind and the burning of Atlanta. The woman pauses in her sweeping to look toward the glow. Snow covers everything, intensifying the golden radiance, and there is contrast between the welcoming lights in the windows of the houses and the mysterious light up the road. One wonders: Is this woman alone? In danger? Is there a war? What is going to happen next?

 

Composition: This drawing is asymmetrically balanced. The large tree in the middle-left, along with the birch trees, the woman, and a portion of her house and fence, are balanced by the other portion of her house and fence, two other houses, the road with its fence, and, of course, the light at the end of the road. Tying this whole composition together is the dark tree, its branches extending from the left side to beyond the right side of the drawing.

 

The tree branches, the fence and the road, and the glance of the woman swiftly lead our eye from the left to the right side of the drawing, where we find its focal point: the light at the end of the road.

Positive and negative space is handled in Mikolaycak’s usual, but unconventional, manner. The sky, which is commonly seen as negative space, is full of firelight and hatch marks (pencil lines indicating smoke). Lively and patterned, it is more positive space than negative space. Negative space is unmistakable in the upper portion of the large tree that breaks out of the picture plane and onto the white page. The snow, which is light grayish-green because it is nighttime, acts as the negative space in this drawing. The trees, bushes, houses, and woman—all “things”—comprise the positive space.

The gestalt groupingprinciples are proximity (due to the close overlapping of the trees, the woman, the cottages, etc.) and continuation (due to the patterns in the clothing, decorations on the houses, and the repetition of fence-posts). Similarity is found in the repeated circular shapes of the woman’s hair, the ends of the logs, and finials on the fence, and in the repeated rectangular shapes of the windows, logs, fence, and the very edge of the picture plane.

There is a combination of horizontal (logs, windows), vertical (trees, the broom handle, doorways, fences, and the edge of the cottages), and diagonal lines (the woman’s pose, the top of the fence, roof lines, road, and the branches of the tree) in this piece. Thediagonal lines (particularly the tree branches and the fence) are the strongest lines, and they point to the light at the end of the road (the focal point).

Color: The color composition is an analogous warm composite of browns, reds, red-oranges, oranges, yellow-oranges, and yellows, with an opposingaccent of green and blue-green. The values used are mostly mid-tones, with a dark-value tree placed in front of the light-value snow for emphasis. The reds are highly saturated, surrounded by colors of lessersaturation (browns, pale golds, pale greens and blue-greens). The gray-green snow is the least saturated of the colors and tends, therefore, to work as negative space.

Control: As always, Mikolaycak’s virtuosity shines through. This work has wonderful architectural details as well as a disquieting atmosphere as conveyed by the sky and the strange light at the end of the road. The figure of the woman, although beautifully drawn, is secondary to the striking figure of the large tree and the eerie sky—testaments to Mikolaycak’s mastery of story-telling through skillful manipulation of pictorial elements.

 

 

 

9. Juma and the Magic Jinn (1987)

 

Work discussed: illustration on page 10

Process: The only preliminary drawing found for this illustration is a detailed black and white pencil drawing done before the final colored pencil rendering. It is like the finished illustration in every sense except color.

 

Content: In the foreground is a young boy holding a large jar. Next to him is a cat. In the middle ground we find the figure of a woman who seems to rise up from out of the jar. The bottom of her body is obliterated by smoke, which also emanates from the jar. We see her veil, part of her face (her eyes and the top part of her nose), her forearms and hands (covered with jewelry), and her hair (wrapped with beads). Along with the smoke there are stars. In the background there is a night sky.

 

Cultural content: The woman and the boy appear to be African. The woman’s jewelry and beads could indicate royalty or wealth, but the fact that she appears out of the smoke coming from a jar signals that she is a magic being.

 

Emotional Content: There is a sense of excitement in this illustration. The wide open eyes of the woman—you cannot tell from the picture if she is angry, happy, scary, or what—tell us that something important is happening. The boy and the cat seem to be anticipating something. There is a tension here, and it leaves us wondering. A night sky also indicates a mysterious time when magic could happen.

There is a contrast between the passive expression in the boy’s eyes (they seem to be half-closed) and the wary look of the cat. As they both look at the figure of the woman, one gets the notion that perhaps the cat is more discerning about what is occuring than the boy!

 

Composition: This drawing is asymmetrically balanced. It is composed in one large swoop, a backwards “C”, with the boy and cat on the bottom part and the woman on the top. In the center we have smoke and stars. The veils that adorn the woman move along with the smoke and stars to unify the figure of the woman with that of the boy and cat.

Oureyes might move through this piece from the boy’s hand and arm on the lower left, to the boy’s face, up the smoke and the veil, and on to the right side to the woman’s face. We may then gaze down the woman’s arm on the left side to the cat, and around in an oval once again. The second time through, we may take in more visual detail, such as the jar and stars, and the adornment on the woman. The focalpoint is clearly the woman’s eyes.

Positive and negative space is handled in an unusual manner. Smoke, which is more commonly seen as positive space, is used here as negative space. This negative space breaks into the space of the woman’s body and veil,telling us visually that she is magic. We also have some of the beads in the woman’s hair flying out, disconnected from her head, adding to the excitement.

Themost important gestalt groupingprinciples are closure (we do not see the woman’s body or veil, but we know it is there), continuation (there is pattern in the jar, the boy’s hat, the jewelry and the beads), and of course, similarity (the shapes in the folds of the veil, the cloud forms, and the shapes of the beads).

The strongest lines in this illustration are curvilinear and diagonal, giving it both excitement and sensuality.

Color: The color composition is an analogous warm composition (browns, reds, red-oranges, oranges, yellow-oranges, and yellows), with an opposingaccent (blue). The values are, for the most part, contrasting light-tones and dark-tones. These give the piece drama. The gold tones are highly saturated, as are the brown skin tones. The dark values in the cat, the boy’s hair, and the sky, along with the dark values in the woman’s hair and eyes, lend unity to the piece.

Control: This illustration is done so brilliantly that we sense her body rising quickly out of the jar, even though this is not pictured. Mikolaycak deftly combines the elements of figure and drapery, and with clever use of pictorial elements, he instills a wonderful sense of excitement and anticipation in his viewers. One might say that the magic comes from his drawing as much as from the story itself.

 

10. The Rumor of Pavel and Paali – a Ukrainian Folktale (1988)

Work discussed: illustration on pages 25-26

Process: Mikolaycak began with black and white photos of the model, posed and dressed in a tunic as he would be in the illustration. In this case, because a tree was prominent in the drawing, he included photos of various trees also. From there, he drew his small gestural drawing for the story-board, and then a black and white perfectly detailed drawing on tracing paper. The final illustration is the same as this drawing except for the addition of color.

Content: In the foreground are fluid forms made of “light” which appear to move in a circle toward a young man sitting in a coniferous tree. The tree takes up much of the foreground and middle-ground. In the background we see the moon and the night sky. The text, which blocks out a third of the illustration and hides half of the young man, is bordered on both sides by rectangular designs that look like pieces of a patchwork quilt.

Cultural context is difficult to quickly discern because the tree, the man, and most of his clothing seem generic. The fur cape and fur boots suggest the possibility of northern Europe, but the patchwork inside his cape reminds us of Ukrainian Easter eggs.

Putting this illustration into an emotional context is difficult also, for without reading the text and only looking at the drawing, the young man appears to be ecstatic. The spirits, although agitated, do not seem as “evil” as they apparently are. Perhaps Mikolaycak could have made them more frightening.

The composition is asymmetrical with heavier weight given to the left side of the drawing where most of the figures and objects are placed. It is balanced somewhat on the right by the tree needles and dark branches, which have high contrast and give extra visual weight, but the “action” is clearly on the left.

Our eyes might move through this piece from the face of the young man outward, following the line of the shapes of the spirits. We would also follow the diagonal lines of the tree branches on the right side, to the needles, and back through the branches and the spirits to the man’s face once more. We might then move around his body looking at his hands, back to his face and around the spirits and tree branches once more.

The moon and sky provide the negative space. The young man, tree, and spirits are the positive space.

Proximity and repetition are the main gestalt grouping principles. The proximity of the young man to the tree, the spirits, and the moon gives that portion of the drawing more visual importance. Repetition of the shapes of the spirits, the branches, and the needles help unify this work.

The primary quality of lines is diagonal and curved. Diagonal lines tend to give energy and movement to a drawing. Curved lines are softer and more lyrical. The “spirits” are drawn in a radiating form around the face and hands. The radiating lines emphasize the face and hands inside the circle. The lines of the needles are random, diagonal and shorter than the branches, bestowing a feeling of nervous energy to the rest of the work.

There is an implied line where the spirit closest to the man’s left leg seems to take over the actual line of his leg from the knee down, giving the impression that the spirits are taking over his body –which is exactly what is happening.

Color: The color is made up of primary and secondary triads. The red of the shirt, the yellow of the moon and the blue of the sky are the primary colors. The violet of the pants, the orange of the spirits and the green of the needles are secondary colors. Both the primary and secondary colors are of medium saturation and medium to light value. The high contrast between the darker value (black) of the tree branches (also the cape and boots) and the sky give the drawing a sense of drama.

The choice of colors is realistic, yet the moon does not appear to be a light source. The colors are subdued because it is nighttime. One sees shadows in the clusters of needles; presumably the light source is from the spirits.

Control: This drawing comes at the climax of the story where the “villain gets his due.” Even if we did not know the story line, however, we would be moved by this masterful blending ofthe natural and supernatural. Mikolaycak’s illustration makes us feel the apprehension and thrill of “things that go whoosh in the night.” He helps us believe that we have indeed seen spirits, and that we can be moved and molded by strange forces beyond our comprehension.

 

11. Tam Lin (1990)

Work discussed: illustrations on pages 11 and 12

Process: Milolaycak began, as always, with photos. In this case, however, he used two female models for the lovers embrace. Many of the photos had draped fabric to aid him in drawing the clothing. Next he created the sketches for the story-board, and finally the detailed black and white drawing he used in preparation for the final colored illustration.

Content: In the foreground we see a thicket full of thorns. A piece of cloth is caught on the thorns. In the middle-ground are vines and underbrush upon which stand two young people embracing. In the background are more thorny bushes and a night sky with clouds and a full moon.

Culturally , we can assume from the clothing that the story takes place in Scotland, perhaps in the nineteenth century or earlier. The man wears a hat (tam) and kilts. A length of cloth is wrapped around his jacket and his shirt has ruffled sleeves. The woman wears a long dress and cape. Both are in different plaids, indicating that they are from different clans.

Emotionally , it is obvious that these are two lovers, but perhaps star-crossed lovers because of the thorns and the dark, threatening sky. The woman’s face is hidden in the man’s chest and he looks up at the moon as if for some kind of help. Their embrace looks more desperate than happy.

If one looks at the two pages as one drawing, the composition of this work is asymmetrical. The primary focus is on the left side with the text and thorns giving balance to the right side. The primary focal point is the face of the man and woman (particularly the man’s) and then the full moon and the clouds because that it where he gazes.

Our eyes might move through this piece starting with the faces, to the moon, back down the cape of the woman, to the cloth trapped in the thorns, and back up the thorns (which point to the man’s body), up the piece of cloth wrapped around his upper torso, and back to the faces once more.

The gestalt grouping principles used to unify this work would be proximity, repetition and continuation. Proximity is seen in the closeness of the figures of the man and woman, and with the thorns, which are close and impenetrable. There is repetition in the shapes of the clouds, the swirling cloth, and most certainly the thorns. Continuation is seen in the patterns of the plaids.

The picture-plane is moderately full. There is negative space around the couple and in the interior of some of the thorns. The sky is so colorless it appears as negative space. The thorns on the right page seem to break into the space allowed for text.

The quality of lines is both curvilinear and diagonal. The large, swirling fabric works as a nice contrast to the sharp thorns of the bushes.

Color: The color combination is one of complementary colors on the color-wheel. Highly- saturated red and green predominate in the costume of the woman (these colors are opposite each other on the Munsell Color Wheel). There is also dramatic use of black and white in the cloth that the man wears, as well as the thorns against a white page containing the text. One can discern a slight light-source from the moon that shines on the man’s face and the cloth, particularly the fabric in the foreground.

Control: As in many of Mikolaycak’s drawings, this one abounds in curvilinear, swirling shapes and he does these with flair. Even the thorns, which we know are sharp and harmful, look almost lyrical, when drawn by this master of composition. The moody night sky adds to the beauty and mystery of this work.

 

12. The Hero of Bremen (1993)

Work discussed: illustration on pages 17 and 18

Process: Mikolaycak took black and white photos of models who were posed in the manner in which they would be drawn. Next, he made a small gestural sketch for the storyboard that showed both pages. From there he drew an exact rendering of the illustration. The final illustration was exactly like this rendering except for the addition of color.

Content: In the foreground we see a white tree that breaks out of the picture-plane in the lower left side of the drawing. It works as negative space along with the white horse and the horse blanket. (Remember, Mikolaycak often used positive space as negative space.) In the middle-ground we see a man lying down. Even without knowing the story, the man looks odd because of a hump on his back. His right hand looks broken or deformed. Joining him in the middle-ground are the bottom front legs of a horse. In the background are more trees, foliage, and a low stone wall.

Cultural content is a study in opposites. The man looks poor (his shirt is clumsily sewn together) and the rider on the horse, even though we cannot see him, is assumed to be wealthy because of the ornate blanket that covers the horse. We would probably place this illustration in medieval Europe because of the costume on the man and the blanket on the horse.

Psychologically , we see opposing forces at work. The man looks poor, and lies on the ground looking up at the man on the horse. We cannot tell if the man on the ground is in danger, but because his face looks more in awe or wonder than fear, we might suppose he is not in trouble. Perhaps he looks for assistance. The predominance of white would also indicate the goodness—or perhaps the supernatural quality—of the man on the horse.

The composition is asymmetrical with the horse on the left side balancing the figure of the man and the tree on the right side. The implied weight of the horse, and the fact that the tree breaks out of the picture-plane, also help balance this work. The primary focal point is the man’s face, but since he looks at the horse’s rider, the rider is the implied secondary focal point.

Our eyes might move through this piece from the man’s face, up the left front leg of the horse, down the right leg of the horse, over to the man’s extended arm, and up the trunk of the white tree, across the branches of the white tree, over to the horse, and around again, taking in the rocks, the tree in the background, and the leaves and grass.

All four gestalt grouping principles areused. We see similarity, repetition, continuation, and closure. The similarity of shapes between the horse’s legs and the white tree unify this work, along with the similarity of the man’s head and the rocks in the background. Repetition is seen in the shapes of the leaves, branches and grass. Continuation (pattern) is seen in the sewing on the man’s coat. (It may be helpful to state here that continuation is a more regulated similar shape.) Closure is found on both the horse and the white tree, for we see only part of both and our eyes and imagination must finish the rest.

The quality of lines is primarily vertical (horses legs, trees) with an opposing horizontal element (the body of the man and the rock wall). The strength of the horse and the trees is so pronounced that the man seem weak by contrast—until we see the stone wall, which tells us that things lying down can also be strong!

Color: The colors are for the most part complementary (opposite on the Munsell Color Wheel) with some analogous colors added for interest. Red and green predominate. Even though the red tends toward a red-orange and the green tends toward the yellow-green, we still get the sense of opposite colors. The high contrast between the dark greens in the back-ground and the white horse, light-green ground and white tree lends visual drama. The red hat on the man is interesting. It seems like a hat worn by a peasant, but since red is the color of nobility one wonders. We know there is an ambient light source for there are shadows on the horse, the rocks, the man, and among the leaves.

Control: This is the last book on which Mikolaycak worked. He was quite ill but managed to finish the book anyway, continuing his excellent craftsmanship up to the very end. In a way, he was like the peasant in the story—he kept going, always with the hope that what he did would count for something. I think Mikolaycak’s work, with its virtuosity, spirituality, and passion will inspire illustrators for generations to come.

Thank you for reading this commentary. I hope it has helped you better understand and appreciate this extraordinary artist. I hope too that it motivates you toward greater achievement in your own artistic pursuits.

Judith Johnson is a Professor in the Design, Housing and Apparel Department at the University of Minnesota.