Saturday, October 24, 2009
Illustrator shows kids how to draw on a vision
By RICK ROUAN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
POLAND — Slowly but surely, the blank canvases before Dobbins Elementary School kindergartners transformed from igloo-shaped circles into bulging-eyed ladybugs.
The group of green-clad children wasn’t in a regular art class, though. They were taking lessons from Bruce Langton, a children’s books illustrator and wildlife painter.
Langton spent about 45 minutes with each grade level. He spoke about his dream to be an artist and how he goes about painting a picture — before giving a drawing lesson.
“I teach them how to keep drawing simple,” said Langton, who told students he was positive that he wanted to be an artist in the fourth grade.
The 58-year-old illustrator has been painting professionally since the 1970s and started out working for an advertising agency before pursuing wildife art full time. In the last eight years, Langton has illustrated 14 children’s books, including the Ohio-themed alphabet book “B is for Buckeye.”
Langton, who lives in South Bend, Ind., has spoken at schools in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and Tennessee. He is in Youngstown this week to speak to some area schools, and he is a keynote speaker at the Youngstown State University Literacy Conference on Saturday.
The two-day conference will feature keynote speakers and breakout sessions about the latest developments in literacy for the 400 to 500 educators who are scheduled to attend, said Mary Lou DiPillo, associate dean in YSU’s Beeghly College of Education.
“Literacy is certainly the foundation for academic success,” DiPillo said. “Students who cannot read or write well develop problems in all areas.”
Principal Cheryl Borovitcky said several Dobbins teachers will attend the conference.
“One of the first ways we look at literacy is through books,” Borovitcky said, adding that developing literacy in students is one of the primary focuses of an elementary-school curriculum.
The Dobbins parent-teacher organization sponsored Langton’s visit to Dobbins, which is the second of its kind in 2009. Borovitcky said the school brought in an author for an all-day assembly in February.
“We try to bring in well-known authors and illustrators to help us with our task to build good readers,” she said.
On Thursday, the school was appealing to its students’ enthusiasm for art. After giving a short presentation on his personal background and how he uses photography as a basis for his paintings, Langton gave a short drawing lesson.
Students sketched two orbs and eventually added eyes, antennae and spots to complete their ladybugs.
Langton emphasized to students that he once thought about giving up on artwork but that his wife pushed him to keep doing what he loved.
“If you have a dream, don’t give up on it,” he said.
rrouan@vindy.com