Chris Raschka: Illustrator – United States

The task of a picture book illustrator…is to remember a particular emotion, heighten it, and then capture it in some painted vocabulary, so that the same emotion is evoked in the child.

C. Raschka

born in pennsylvania in 1959, Chris Raschka did not set out to be an illustrator. Even though he enjoyed drawing, his first love was science which led to a biology degree and an application to medical school. However, Raschka met his wife, and instead, they decided to join the Peace Corps. Raschka’s natural talent for drawing blossomed during their time as cottage parents at a children’s home in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. Raschka and his wife spent most of their free time drawing and painting.

They were able to exhibit and sell many of their paintings before completing their two year stint. Their success caused Raschka to scrap his plans for medical school and try to make a living from drawing. A chance encounter with a children’s book called A Pup Grows Up illustrated by Vladimir Radunsky planted the idea of creating children’s books into Raschka’s head.

Watercolors are Raschka’s medium of choice, and while many of his drawings are simple, they are capable of conveying complex meanings. For example, in A Ball for Daisy (2011) the colors on the page slowly change as Daisy’s emotions change. In the beginning of the book, there is a happy yellow undertone that changes to shades of gray reflecting Daisy’s sadness after her ball breaks. In addition to the color changes, the expressions on Daisy’s face also change—from happy and perky to confused and sad.

Many of Raschka’s illustrations also exhibit a childishness and playfulness that appeals to all readers no matter how old. In The Hello, Goodbye Window (2005), the drawing of Nanna and Poppy’s house at the beginning of the book is a riot of blues and greens with blobs of gold. These colors come together in a painting that looks like it came straight from the mind of a child. Raschka gives the reader a view of the house through the eyes of a child. The illustrations of the people on the following pages are a little more sophisticated and complex but still carry that same child-like quality.

Raschka has earned many awards with his charming illustrations. Among them are two Caldecott Medals (2006 and 2011) and one Caldecott Honor (1994), four Charlotte Zolotow Awards—Highly Commended (2006, 2011, 2012, and 2015), and one previous nomination for the Hans Christian Andersen Award (2012).