Issue Date: November 20, 2005

Books

An artist who never grew up

Todd Parr draws inspiration from his childlike view of the world.

By Kathleen Conroy

Award-winning author and illustrator Todd Parr, 43, now laughs about getting an F in high school on a self-portrait. Why the failing grade? He recalls being told his style was "too childish." But never losing touch with his inner child has brought great success to the Berkeley, Calif., artist and author of 26 books, including "Reading Makes You Feel Good" and "Otto Goes to School." Parr's colorful, quirky characters also can be seen weekdays on "ToddWorld," his morning cartoon TV series for preschoolers now in its second year on TLC and Discovery Kids Channel, with episodes of the Emmy-nominated series available on DVD and VHS. We spoke with him:

Tell us the most amusing reaction to your work.
A woman who bought one of my books e-mailed me: "I was surprised to learn you're an adult, because I felt it was the work of a 6-year-old." I was a little hurt, but upon reflection, I realized that's the very quality that puts my work within kids' reach.

Did you get encouragement as a budding artist when you were growing up?
No such luck. When I was about 8, I showed my parents a Snoopy drawing I'd made for a magazine contest. Their response: "Nice, but you're not allowed to trace it." They didn't believe I had drawn it myself! That must have discouraged me, because I don't recall doing any drawing after that ... until high school.

And there your talent was "discovered"?
[Laughs] My high school art teacher and I clashed big-time. I'd try drawing a still life or a landscape in the traditional style, the way he wanted. But my drawing style was -- and still is -- like a 6-year-old's. So my artwork was never on display in the hallways along with the other kids'.

So you put an art career on hold and went on to get a "real" job?
Yes. I was a [United Airlines] flight attendant for 15 years. That built my self-confidence enough to start making art the way I wanted to do it. I fine-tuned my technique, simplified my images and combined them with messages. My first four kids' books came out in 1999.

How do you find the time to work in so many mediums?
I use a modern version of drawing where I create the black outlines of my images and then use [the computer program] Photoshop to drop in the colors.

Are your characters -- like Todd, the star of "ToddWorld" -- modeled on real people?
Not intentionally. It was only after I watched it that I realized, "Oh, I'm just like Todd -- except I don't wear underpants on my head when I draw, like he does. And his friend Pickle, it turns out, is so much like my real-life best friend, Bill. Surprise!

What can adults learn from the way children see the world?
To be honest. And to keep things simple. Kids say what they think. We tend to complicate things as we age.