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Earth Day: Loving Our Planet Through Art
last updated 22 April 2021
This Earth Day, Bright Artists are sharing their thoughts on how they hope their art can cause a ripple effect of change to protect the earth and use its resources wisely. Earth day goes beyond the boundaries of one day a year, and our artists are committed to creating art that celebrates our vast universe. Through published titles or personal art, they are calling young readers to step up and leave their mark on Earth.
Artwork from The Big Beach Cleanup illustrated by Katie Rewse
What message do you hope readers receive when reading This Pretty Planet and The Big Beach Cleanup?
“I hope it gives readers a chance to just sit back and take a look at the world with fresh eyes. It’s so easy to get lost in everyday things like school, sports, etc. that we forget about what an amazing place this is. The other message is that we need to take care of it. Stop polluting it and treat it with the respect it deserves. We take it for granted and if we can see it with wonder, it makes you care about it more.” - Bright Artist Lee White, illustrator of This Pretty Planet (Atheneum)
“I hope that readers will firstly learn more about the issue of ocean plastics and the importance of cleaning up the beaches, and secondly I hope that readers will see how as an individual it is possible to make a difference, in any situation and no matter how young you are.” - Bright Artist Katie Rewse, illustrator of The Big Beach Cleanup (Albert Whitman)
When illustrating the art for The Big Beach Cleanup, what was your inspiration?
“I was thrilled to be asked to illustrate this book as it is a topic which I am extremely passionate about. I spend a lot of time at the beach and in the water, so I took inspiration from beaches near my home on the south coast of England. I participate in beach cleanups, so (sadly) it was fairly easy to visualize how the trash on the beach should look too.” - Katie Rewse
Do you think art has the power to change how we care for our planet?
As an artist and global citizen living in this world, I am responsible for creating works to tell stories and make artwork to remind people to care for our extraordinary planet. I hope my art provides comfort and happiness, brings smiles to people’s faces, and is a reminder of the beautiful world we live in. - Bright Artist, Ginnie Hsu
What message do you hope readers receive when reading Dear Earth, From Your Friends in Room 5 and Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years?
“Something I love about this book is that it shows there’s a lot of small actions we can take right now to improve our chances of saving the planet. There’s a big picture that we need to have in mind if we want to change our world for the better and keep what we have. It’s a mission for everyone.” - Bright Artist, Luisa Uribe illustrator of Dear Earth…From Your Friends in Room 5
“Our planet is a living and breathing being, and we need to take care of her a lot better than we have been doing. The book offers a few pointers on what we can do as individuals, families and organizations to help protect Earth and make her a nicer place for us all to live in and share.” - Bright Artist, David Litchfield illustrator of Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years (Henry Holt)
When illustrating the art for Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years, what was your inspiration?
“I absolutely loved the way that Stacy McAnulty wrote the book. Her style is very fun and breezy but it contains some very real facts and figures. It sounds funny but the inspiration for the art was from a number of boring and dry science text books I read at school when I was younger. Stacy and myself wanted to prove that learning about how Earth works shouldn’t be boring. It should be fun. So I was inspired by those books to do the exact opposite of how they visualised information.” - David Litchfield
Do you think art has the power to change how we care for our planet?
“I absolutely believe that art has the power to change how we care for our planet! Art is a powerful vehicle for personal, social & environmental change. So much about life has to do with awareness. We have to be aware of the struggles of our neighbors. We have to be aware of our impact on the environment and more importantly we have to be aware of the things we can do to help. If we are ignorant, we can’t change. Art helps educate others.” - Bright Artist, Matthew Taylor Wilson
“Children respond to pictures and words and begin to understand what is being told to them. Children are our future and the more informative books we can make, the better! I’ve just started writing again and creating new work. I’m working on some stories that center on striving for what you love and being the best you can be, no matter your age. I hope my work can entertain and inspire children to strive for what they love and be the best they can be.” - Bright Artist, Oliver Averill
“Art does have the power to change our planet. Artists are the ones who reflect the world in their work. Sometimes they show the good, other times they show the bad. Either way artists hold up a mirror to what is happening. Art has the power to spark interest and move people at the most basic level. Saying “we need to clean up our planet” is good, but if you show it in an image, it becomes more real. When you see how amazing the world is in paintings and photographs, it showcases the things that need to be saved.” - Lee White
What mark do you hope your art leaves on the world?
I hope my art inspires people to be better, to be conscious of our impact on the world, and to start doing something about it in the ways that we can. I want my art to be a positive force, and to be a light that makes everything brighter. - Luisa Uribe
Thank you so much for reading about Earth Day, and how Bright Artists are making a change through their illustrations. Stay tuned each month for more blogs on our site, and reach out through Instagram or Twitter to let us know how you are helping change the planet.