Kutztown illustrator and author Kevin McCloskey presented a children’s drawing workshop in conjunction with the exhibition of the original art from his children’s book, “The Real Poop on Pigeons,” at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary on July 1.
His work will be on display in the Hawk Mountain’s Visitor’s Center Gallery until Aug. 10.
“Today’s event (July 1) was to share my pigeon art with children. We made pigeon finger puppets,” said McCloskey. “Many visitors to Hawk Mountain are serious birders. Oddly enough, some birders don’t even record the pigeon on their bird sighting list. My children’s books celebrate the simplest creatures, those some might take for granted.”
How does “Real Poop on Pigeons” art exhibition relate to hawks at the Sanctuary?
“Pigeons are birds, of course. Birdwatchers flock to Hawk Mountain to see not only raptors, but other birds including songbirds and hummingbirds. Serious birdwatchers might think of pigeons as feral birds, but they are extraordinary animals, and children love them,” he said.
McCloskey notes that in the gallery on permanent display is a reproduction of Audubon’s “beautiful” Passenger Pigeon print and stuffed specimens of that extinct species.
He quotes Rosalie Edge, the founder of Hawk Mountain, saying, “The Time to protect a species is while it is still common.”
“I feel so lucky that my books have found an audience,” said the author who also teaches art and design at Kutztown University.
McCloskey has written three books now for Toon Books, “We Dig Worms!,” “The Real Poop on Pigeons,” and new for 2107 “Something’s Fishy.”
“The publisher has labeled my series the Giggle and Learn series. The next one might be about snails. I am so fortunate to have found my niche at Toon Books. I have done presentations at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute. All my Toon Books are edited and art directed by Francoise Mouly, one of America’s greatest art directors.”
Upcoming local events include July 16 at Firefly Book Store, Kutztown, at 2 p.m. with a free public reading along with his wife “Mama Patt.” Also see him on July 29 at Barnes and Noble, Wyomissing. The free event starts at 11:30 a.m.
For more about his new book, “Something Fishy,” visit http://www.toon-books.com/somethings-fishy.html and check out the recent interview at School Library Journal at http://blogs.slj.com/goodcomicsforkids/2017/06/21/interview-kevin-mccloskey-on-making-science-comics-for-kids/.