SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Fusenews
  • Reviews
  • Librarian Previews
  • Best Books
    • Top 100
    • Best Books of 2022
    • Best Books of 2021
    • Best Books of 2020
    • Best Books of 2019
    • Best Books of 2018
    • Best Books of 2017
    • Best Books of 2016
    • Best Books of 2015
    • Best Books of 2014
    • Best Books of 2013
  • Fuse 8 n’ Kate
  • Videos
  • Press Release Fun

February 2, 2017 by Betsy Bird

Art in the Children’s Room: Elisha Cooper Style – Part Two!

February 2, 2017 by Betsy Bird   7 comments

In 2012 I wrote a piece for this blog entitled Art in the Children’s Room: Elisha Cooper Style.  In it, I wrote the following:

Here at New York Public Library you might think that the branches are filled to brimming with the art of local authors and illustrators.  While it may be true that we have some lovely pieces by Ezra Jack Keats and Faith Ringgold here and there, it doesn’t come up all that often.  So I need not tell you how excited I was when I heard that Elisha Cooper had volunteered out of the goodness of his golden glorious heart to paint art for the children’s room in Greenwich Village’s Jefferson Market Branch.

ElishaCooper1What I can tell you now is that the art of New York artists is achingly absent from the various branches of New York Public Library.  Why is this?  I’ve heard any number of reasons, from the fact that if the walls had original art they could never be repainted again to the fact that art makes the branches too distinct from one another.  In other words, silly reasons.  Of course the Jefferson Market Branch is different.  A magical little fortress standing tall and proud in Greenwich Village, it often gets away with the impossible.

With all this in mind, you can imagine how thrilled I was when Mr. Cooper told me this week that he’d just completely new art for the branch.  What kind?  Well, see for yourself. The first are the signs he made for my beloved Jefferson Market branch:

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ElishaCooper1

 

 

 

ElishaCooper4

 

ElishaCooper5

 

ElishaCooper7

ElishaCooper6

The others are for the equally lucky Mulberry Street Branch:

ElishaCooper3

 

 

ElishaCooper2

 

ElishaCooper4

ElishaCooper8

 

ElishaCooper9

 

ElishaCooper10

Elisha says this about the art:

I realize I work with wood during unsettled times; there’s something contemplative/escapist about it (maybe too with art, and reading). I made cutting boards when my daughter was being treated for cancer. I made these library signs as the world flounders. Though maybe that’s too much. I just like playing with wood. And I like libraries.

 

For that matter, this year’s Caldecott winner was painted on found pieces of wood.  I sense a theme.

Speaking to his daughter’s cancer, please be sure to check out Elisha’s heart-wrenching memoir Falling: A Daughter, a Father, and a Journey Back if you’ve a chance.  It’s worth your attention and then some.

Filed under: Uncategorized

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
Elisha CooperJefferson Market Branchlibrary art

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

January 2023

The Top Ten Most Disappointing Edibles and Potables of Children's Literature

by Betsy Bird

January 2023

Announcing the 2023 Newbery/Caldecott/YMA Pre-Game Show!

by Betsy Bird

January 2023

2023 Arrived and a Blog Is Still Here: What Does the Future Hold?

by Betsy Bird

November 2022

A Lost Hero: The Rediscovery of Mildred Batchelder

by Betsy Bird

November 2022

The Yellow Áo Dài : A Talk with Hanh Bui and Minnie Phan

by Betsy Bird

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Notes on January 2023

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Jump Into this Guest Post by Shadra Strickland About Her Latest Book: Jump In!

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

The Archie Encyclopedia | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Heavy Medal

FREEWATER wins the Newbery Medal, live reactions from Heavy Medal bloggers

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Cindy Crushes Programming: My Top Ten Craft Supplies

by Cindy Shutts

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Best Books 2022 | The Year in SLJ Covers

15 Duology, Trilogy, and Series Entries for YA Collections | Series Update

Three Picture Books to Celebrate Black History

SLJ's Starred Books of 2022 | The Year in SLJ Covers

2 Picture Book Biographies about Sister Rosetta Tharpe, The Godmother of Rock ‘n’ Roll

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Even in Australia says

    February 2, 2017 at 8:49 am

    Wonderful. I’d just been on an Elisha Cooper kick and was checking out as many as I could find at the NYPL – except the one you mentioned. Since I became a mother, I can’t read stories (or memoirs) about when bad things happen to children.

  2. Even in Australia says

    February 2, 2017 at 9:16 am

    Is his original work (the one you talk about in the first post) still up at the Jefferson Market branch?

    • Elizabeth Bird says

      February 2, 2017 at 9:58 am

      Yep. The canvasses still hang and may well do so until we’re all dead and gone. Or until the management changes.

  3. Rebecca says

    February 2, 2017 at 7:55 pm

    Thanks for such a great piece, Betsy!

    We love Elisha’s art, and we feel incredibly lucky to have his original paintings, and now hand painted wooden signs, at Jefferson Market.

    And you’re right, by the way. All of Elisha’s art is on permanent display:-)

    Sincerely,
    Rebecca Schosha
    Children’s Librarian, Jefferson Market Library, NYPL

  4. Even in Australia says

    February 6, 2017 at 11:57 am

    I’ll be heading downtown for a visit soon. I love that branch. I got to climb the tower at open house new york in 2015 and my mom always used to take my sister there while I took ballet at Joffrey across the street about 35 years ago!

    • Elizabeth Bird says

      February 6, 2017 at 2:18 pm

      The Joffrey Ballet! I used to try to sign them up for summer reading. And did you get to see the spider when you went into the tower? I hope it’s still there. Loved that thing.

  5. Even in Australia says

    February 7, 2017 at 8:43 am

    Yes, the spider is still there!

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

  • External Links

    • A Fuse #8 Production Reviews
  • Follow This Blog

    Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

    Primary Sidebar

    • News & Features
    • Reviews+
    • Technology
    • School Libraries
    • Public Libraries
    • Age Level
    • Ideas
    • Blogs
    • Classroom
    • Diversity
    • People
    • Job Zone

    Reviews+

    • Book Lists
    • Best Books
    • Media
    • Reference
    • Series Made Simple
    • Tech
    • Review for SLJ
    • Review Submissions

    SLJ Blog Network

    • 100 Scope Notes
    • A Fuse #8 Production
    • Good Comics for Kids
    • Heavy Medal
    • Neverending Search
    • Teen Librarian Toolbox
    • The Classroom Bookshelf
    • The Yarn

    Resources

    • 2022 Youth Media Awards
    • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
    • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
    • Summer Reading 2021
    • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
    • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
    • Summer Programming Survey
    • Research
    • White Papers / Case Studies
    • School Librarian of the Year
    • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
    • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

    Events & PD

    • In-Person Events
    • Online Courses
    • Virtual Events
    • Webcasts
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Subscribe
    • Media Inquiries
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Content Submissions
    • Data Privacy
    • Terms of Use
    • Terms of Sale
    • FAQs
    • Diversity Policy
    • Careers at MSI


    COPYRIGHT © 2023


    COPYRIGHT © 2023