Kęstutis Kasparavičius: Lithuania Illustrator

The best reward - when someone tells you something is beautiful.

Kęstutis Kasparavičius

Kęstutis Kasparavičius was born in Aukštadvaris, Lithuania in 1954. His parents were both teachers at a primary school and Kasparavičius remembers a bookcase full of books in the classroom. He studied at the M. K. Čiurlionis School of Arts in Vilnius. He actually began his studies as a choir director, but changed his mind and entered the Vilnius Institute of Arts (now Academy of Arts) to study graphic design where his older brother was also a student and assisted him with learning the intricacies of drawing.

Since 1984 Kasparavičius has been working steadily as a children's book illustrator and author and has published 45 books with various publishers around the world from Japan to Israel to Greece to Korea and beyond. His books have been translated into eighteen languages, and his best-known titles include Lithuanian Fairy Tales (1989) and classics such as Pinocchio (1993), The Nutcracker (1998), The Little Match Girl (2002), and Saint Valentine (2004).

Kasparavičius's artistic style is soft and simple, with a very distinct and seemingly childlike approach to the text. His preferred watercolors provide a pleasing palette, inspired by the artwork of Beatrix Potter. His work is also known for the growing presence of nonsensical elements and incredibly absurd situations, quickly becoming a hallmark of the artist's individual style. He also portrays the appearance, movement and facial expressions of personified animals particularly well, and in his illustrations knives, forks, and spoons come to life, books fly, trees go for a walk, and Easter eggs make mischief.

Kęstutis Kasparavičius was honored as Illustrator of the Year at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in 1993, and his illustrations have been selected for exhibition at the fair numerous times. His work has also received the Golden Pen of Belgrade, the II Diploma Premi International Catalonia d'Illustracio, Barcelona, and Best Lithuanian Children's Book award, among other recognitions. He currently lives with his wife and four children near Vilnius, Lithuania.