Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Curious George





Recognise this face? The gorgeous illustrations? Curious George, the famous storybook monkey who was spirited away from Africa and escaped his captor to lead a life of adventure travelling the globe (moved to America, joined the circus) and beyond (became an astronaut), has delighted kids everywhere with his cheeky exploits.
But his creators' exploits were equally epic and they're being celebrated in an exhibition at the Jewish Museum in New York. Curious George Saves the Day: The Art of Margaret and H.A. Rey uncovers the real life dramas of the artists whose lives played out against the dark historical backdrop of the Holocaust.
English readers may know the little rascal as George but as 'Zozo' - UK publishers changed his name thinking it would be disrespectful to have a mischievous monkey with the same name as the sitting king. 
Pity, I reckon the Royals could do with a little monkey magic.

1 comment:

Tom Cartwright said...

There is something most erudite and ostentatious about these drawings - I like them with a great amount of like.