The first Klaas book. Facing realities (review)

Klaas Verplancke (Ed) / Pieter Van Oudheusden (Text) The first Klaas book. Facing realities. Selected works by Klaas Verplancke Leuven: Oogachtend 2009 223pp + DVD-Video ISBN 9789077549537 49.00

“Everybody is able to draw a chair, but an illustrator knows how to draw what a chair thinks and feels.” In the drawings of the Flemish illustrator Klaas Verplancke, truth and metaphors are not separate from one another, but intertwine. He began in the late 1980s by illustrating texts written by other authors; in 1996, he published the first picture book for which he created both the text and the illustrations. In 2000, a grant allowed him to dedicate himself more fully to creating children’s book illustrations. This proved to be a turning point in Verplancke’s career, immediately rewarded by two prestigious awards at the 2001 Bologna International Children’s Book Fair. More prizes followed, and in 2006 he was among the finalists for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. This voluminous, beautifully designed book documents the artistic development of Verplancke both as a writer and as an illustrator, presenting many examples of his impressive oeuvre. Dutch author Pieter Van Oudheusden describes this development while paying special attention to the influence of the history of art on Verplancke’s illustrations. The reproductions invite readers to look and see and to make many a striking discovery.

Commemorating the twentieth anniversary of Verplancke’s career as an illustrator, this book gives a comprehensive overview of his body of work. With texts in Dutch, English, and French, it is accompanied by a DVD (again with subtitles in Dutch, English, and French) showing an intriguing documentary about the creative routine of the internationally renowned artist.