In Memory of the Future

In Memory of the Future – an Illustrators Ireland Exhibition

This is my piece titled 'The Sanctuary' which I created for the Illustrators Ireland group exhibition In Memory of the Future, which celebrates the work of Tomi Ungerer.

Organised by IGI member Margaret Anne Suggs, the idea was that we could honor the memory and work of Tomi Ungerer by creating new pieces inspired by his work.

Here is the flyer below with some of Tomi's work:

Along with the artwork, we each wrote something about our approach, and our response to Tomi's work. Here is mine below:

I like the humour, imagination, and playfulness of Tomi’s work, and his anti-war and anti-injustice message. In one of his books he says the kindness from his neighbour made him see, ‘goodwill as a rainbow bridging two storms’ which is a striking thought and reminder that only the work of kindness will start to fix things, never war.
I chose the last illustration in his last book, ‘Nonstop’, in which two refugees finally find a safe place inside a giant cake house filled with everything they could ever need. We only see the exterior in his illustration so this is what I imagine could be inside. It turns out that the top part of the cake house is actually a glasshouse filled with (mostly) tasty plants, all managed carefully by the leafy hare spirit, who welcomes newcomers with a lively tune on the whistle and a scrumptious cake.
Everyone understands that this sanctuary is to be shared. It belongs to no-one and everyone.