Jan Brett
With over thirty nine million books in print, Jan Brett is one of the nation’s foremost author illustrators of children’s books. She is known for colorful, detailed depictions of a wide variety of animals and human cultures ranging from Scandinavia to Africa. As a student at the Boston Museum School, she spent hours in the Museum of Fine Arts. “It was overwhelming to see the room-size landscapes and towering stone sculptures, and then moments later to refocus on delicately embroidered kimonos and ancient porcelain,” she says. “I’m delighted and surprised when fragments of these beautiful images come back to me in my painting.”
Travel is also a constant inspiration. Jan visits many different countries where she researches the architecture and costumes that appear in her work. “From cave paintings to Norwegian sleighs, to Japanese gardens, I study the traditions of the many countries I visit and use them as a starting point for my children’s books.” Among her best-known titles are Daisy Comes Home, set in China and the Ukranian folktale Gingerbread Baby. Jan has not sold her original artwork for more than 20 years so R. Michelson Galleries is honored to be able to offer these amazing watercolors.
