Day 2 Blog Tour for Floating on Mama's Song: An Interview with Author Laura Lacamara

It's my pleasure to interview author Laura Lacamara on day 2 of the blog tour for her debut picture book, Floating on Mama's Song. Published by Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of Harper Collins, this bilingual book features text in English and Spanish and illustrations by Yuyi Morales. The release date is Wednesday, September 1. Comment on any of the blogs on the tour this week (see below), and you could win a signed copy.

I was intrigued to learn Floating on Mama’s Song was based on a true story – your mother was an opera singer in Cuba. I gather the idea of having the mama float was the inspiration that helped the story – not to mention the characters - take off. Where did that inspiration come from and how did the concept evolve?

L.L. Initially, I was thinking visually, as an illustrator, when I came up with the idea for Floating on Mama’s Song.  I needed a story to illustrate in my Children’s Book Illustration class, and I knew I wanted to incorporate something of my Cuban family background. That’s when I got the inspiration to write about my opera-singing mother.  Imagining illustrating the characters’ costumes and the lush tropical setting excited me artistically, but I still needed a story to tell. Then, in the middle of the night, it came to me! What would happen if mama’s singing literally lifted her off the ground? Who in the story would love it and be supportive? Who might feel threatened by mama’s floating and want to stop it? 

That’s when the story became deeply personal for me. I know first-hand how crucial creative expression can be to one’s happiness. My mother dropped her operatic career after our family had fled Cuba. I often wondered how my mother’s life would have been different, if she had sung opera in the USA.

As an artist, you originally wrote the story as a project you hoped to illustrate. When HarperCollins acquired the manuscript, they chose to have someone else do the illustrations. That someone ended up being the award-winning illustrator, Yuyi Morales. Can you describe how the process unfolded?

L.L. When it came time to choose the illustrator for Floating on Mama’s Song, editor Katherine Tegen included me in the process. We could choose among three or four different artists. My first choice was Yuyi Morales. Yuyi’s magical flowing style seemed perfect for my story. I was so thrilled when Yuyi agreed to illustrate my book that it barely fazed me when Katherine Tegen said Yuyi wouldn’t be able to get to my project for a while, because she had other contracts to fulfill first. It ended up taking a few years from signing the contract to publication, but now that the book is complete, and I see what a magnificent job Yuyi did, I can honestly say it was worth the wait!

In effect, Floating on Mama’s Song is a picture book in the magical realism genre, like Gabriel Garcia Marquez for children. Are you a magical realism aficionado? Who are some of your literary favorites?

L.L. I didn’t set out to do “magical realism.” My story just (magically!) turned out to fit that description. I’ve always loved the idea of breaking free of our ordinary daily life constraints -- which is the quality that attracts me to children’s books. Anything goes, when it comes to a child’s imagination. There are no limits. 

And, though I’ve admired the magical realism novels I’ve read, I’d say a bigger inspiration for me has been my own dream life. I’ve always had flying dreams. Years ago, The Art of Dreaming, written by Carlos Castaneda, inspired me to practice “lucid dreaming,” where you will yourself to wake up inside your dream and then consciously direct the course of the rest of the dream. My dreams always involved flying. I don’t have the active dream life I once had, but, on occasion, I still have an amazing lucid dream.  Okay, so I’m a freaky earth-mama hippie artist that wants to unleash the conventional ties that bind me and let my spirit soar. But, I’m also a Latina, and I love the essence of my Cuban culture, where drama and emotional intensity are coupled with the ability to laugh at ourselves and not take life too seriously. And, when all is said and done, I feel most deeply “at home” speaking Spanish and eating a plate of frijoles negros, black beans, with platanos fritos, fried plantains, followed by my mama’s one and only flan. The best flan in the whole world; really, it is!

The text has a lyrical quality, which suits the subject matter - music. Do you write poetry? Did you study music growing up? Do you sing or play an instrument? What other influences contributed to your writing this book?

L.L. I never formally studied an instrument growing up, except for a few piano lessons my mother gave me at home. At U.C. Santa Cruz, I picked up a guitar and learned a few chords. Ten years later, when I went to Cal State Long Beach to complete my degree, I minored in music. I used my skills to sing Spanish songs and play guitar, when I taught Spanish to kids for three years. I must admit, though, that I have a block when it comes to singing in public. I saw my mother as the singer in our family, my father and I as the visual artists, and my brother as the actor. (I have a very artistic family!) I guess I have an inner critical voice keeping me from singing and stepping outside my family “role.” I guess I need to reread Floating on Mama’s Song!

The story is also infused with imagery and sensory references that evoke the Caribbean:

“The mangos were ripe and music was in the air.”

“I opened the dusty box. It smelled sweet like sugar cane.”

You left Cuba as a baby and yet you have captured vivid details of the setting and culture. How so? Did your family adhere to Cuban cultural traditions after moving to America?

L.L. When I was six months old, my family left Cuba and moved to the US, but a few years later, our family moved to Puerto Rico, a Caribbean island with a culture very much like that of Cuba. That’s where I attended Kindergarten. I have vivid memories of a rooster and chickens running around our neighbor’s yard, warm rain coming down in sudden afternoon downpours, bathtub-temperature ocean water, and having to step around hundreds of little dead frogs washed up on the shore. I was raised speaking Spanish, eating my mom’s wonderful Cuban cooking, and ringing in the new year by throwing a bucket of water out the front door at midnight to dispel evil spirits. Also, for information and inspiration, I asked my mother many questions about her own childhood in Cuba.

What are you working on now?

L.L. Besides promoting Floating on Mama’s Song, I will soon be promoting my other upcoming bilingual book: The Runaway Piggy (the first picture book I’ve illustrated) written by James Luna will be published by Piñata Books on November 30, 2010. I also recently signed another illustration contract with Piñata Books to illustrate a new bilingual picture book, Alicia’s Frothy Aguas Frescas, written by Lupe Ruiz-Flores. That book comes out Fall 2011. Finally, I’m working on writing a new picture book manuscript. More on that to come...

Thank you Laura, and good luck with the launch of your new books!

Visit Laura's website to learn more, and see some of her beautiful art, at: LauraLacamara.com

Here's the schedule for this week's blog tour:

Monday, August 30 - Floating on Mama's Song synopsis, reviews: 

Out of the Paintbox 

         

Wednesday, September 1- Interview with editor Katherine Tegen: 

Tales from the Rushmore Kid 

Thursday, September 2 - Interview with illustrator Yuyi Morales: 

René Colato Lainez 

Friday, September 3 – Announcement of contest winner:

Out of the Paintbox  

Please comment here, or on any of the blogs above, to be entered in the drawing!

New art review & coming up this week...

I'm constantly juggling two passions - art and writing. In my latest article in Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, I write about art - in my review of the recent Nick Cave exhibit, Soundsuits, at UCLA Fowler Museum. Hope you'll take a look: WhiteHotArt.

Check back on Tuesday...



Coming up August 31, my interview with Laura Lacamara, whose debut picture book, Floating on Mama's Song, (Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of Harper Collins) will be released this Wednesday, September 1. Please check back - and you could win a copy of Lacamara's beautiful book - illustrated by Yuyi Morales.

The Poky Little Puppy comes back

While roaming around B&N the other night, I discovered a freshly minted stack of the classic picture book, The Poky Little Puppy. Golden Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books, has reissued the charming story in a large format board book, integrating the iconic golden spine as part of the cover design.
I couldn't resist taking The Poky Little Puppy home with me. If you're a purist who feels the original format shouldn't be altered in anyway, let me reassure you - the revised book design doesn't detract from the story at all, and Gustaf Tenggren's illustrations have the scope to be even more engaging in a larger size.
First published in 1942, the copyright for The Poky Little Puppy was renewed in 1970. What ensures the timelessness of this tale is the lighthearted text by Janette Sebring Lowrey, starting with the first line:

"Five little puppies dug a hole under the fence and went for a walk in the wide, wide world."

An unbeatable opening -  the story could go anywhere from here. And the places it takes the reader, "roly-poly, pell-mell, tumble bumble," still lead to the most comforting delights imaginable: rice pudding, chocolate custard and strawberry shortcake. It's an amusing companion to my other copy of the book - a miniature format my sister-in-law gave me a few years ago. I'm happy to add it to my picture book library.

Consuming art: Museums and Muses

A sidewalk artist in Florence, inspired by Michelangelo's Delphic Sibyl 


I just returned from almost three weeks in the south of France and Italy, kicked off by a stopover in New York City. Aside from friends, family and food (chocolate pizza and coffee gelato most memorably) - my focus was to feast on art - as much art as possible within limited time constraints.

Since my first trip to France and Italy as a little girl, I began consuming art like an elemental form of sustenance - and source of inspiration. This summer of art consumption began with visits to a Picasso retrospective at the Met and a fabulous Matisse exhibit at MOMA in New York City, followed by Gauguin et Les Nabis at the Musee Lodeve and visits to la Musee Picasso in Antibes, the Uffizi Gallery and Accademia in Florence, and the Sistine Chapel in Rome. If not for a misinformed concierge, we would have visited the Villa Borghese Museum too. I wanted to see much more, but at some point I realized I still haven't processed everything I did get to see.

It helped to take notes for follow-up reference. Maybe it's backwards, but now I'm reading the official guide to the Uffizi. It was in the introduction to this wonderful book I came across a gem of knowledge that felt like an epiphany. Officially opened in 1765, the Uffizi was one of the first museums in Europe to conform to the modern concept of a museum as a systematically organized exhibition space for public viewing. According to the guide:

"It is worth remembering that it was created in a city which had long since been the first to revisit the disused term museum, which for the ancient Greeks signified a space dedicated to the Muses."

I'm always fascinated by the etymology of words, and I love the notion that museum stems from muses. For me, discovering this reinforces the idea of art as a source of inspiration. More on art, travel and inspiration coming up. In the meantime, please let me know your thoughts.

Art in France - a foray into pointillisme

Travel is all about discovery and inspiration. This summer I'm seeking both. Even tiny details like a lyrical French phrase or a Roman bridge, could lead to material for a future story or painting.  In my brief stay in New York City last week, I saw two inspiring exhibits - Matisse at MOMA and Picasso at the Met. It seemed like kind of a prelude for my trip to the south of France, where Matisse and Picasso both lived and worked for much of their lives. More on these two fantastic exhibits to come in a future post...

This week, I arrived in Lodeve for part two of my summer travels. One of the highlights was a visit to La Couvertoirade, a medieval village in the Larzac. I explored the walled city, up the tower steps and around the ramparts, gazing down on the rooftops and the narrow passages - searching for an interesting subject to draw. I climbed the hill to the church, where I found a secluded cemetery with the ancient gravestones of long forgotten knights. The gravestones were engraved with symbols of heraldry, but no names. On the back of one of the round stones was a beautiful symbol that reminded me of a fleur de lis. This mysterious engraving inspired a drawing (above left).

I did a more elaborate version on watercolor paper - and then I had an idea. I'd never tried pointillisme, so here is my first attempt (above right): Inspired by the impressionists, I used watercolor pencils to add pigment to the image. Once I add water - the colors will become vibrant. 

Please check back - I'll post the finished painting soon, along with more on art, travel - and the source of inspiration. Where do you find yours? Please comment.

An anniversary and a landmark pass unnoticed

I recently overlooked two connected events that happened around the same time. Just a couple of weeks ago was the first anniversary of my blog. Concurrently, the number of visitors to this site passed the 5,000 mark. I started calculating the statistics: That means an average of 14 readers visited my blog each day. I have no idea if this is good or not. Regardless, the process of coming up with an angle for the blog, writing a weekly post and interacting with other kid lit aficionados has been a lot of fun - and rewarding in ways I hadn't expected. I've met some great people and learned a lot.

This week I'm leaving for a sojourn in the south of France and Italy, with a three-day stop in New York City en route. In addition to hanging out with friends and family, I plan to indulge in art - visiting as many galleries, museums and cathedrals as can be stuffed into the itinerary.  I'm hoping this will provide inspiration for my own art and writing - as well as new material to share here with you.

I look forward to year 2. Any suggestions? Please let me know. Your comments are most welcome.

Monsters & Miracles - Journey through Jewish Picture Books at the Skirball

Zohar - Renato Alarcao (Brazil)

acrylic on paper

This magical image of a tree materializing out of a book, sets the stage for Monsters & Miracles - an exhibit at the Skirball Cultural Center that embraces the conflux of books and art. This original illustration is from the picture book, ABC do Mundo Jadaico by Moacyr Scliar (2007). The  book in the image represents the letter Z, for zohar - the classic text of Jewish mysticism. According to Jewish mythology, the tree symbolizes wisdom.

I'm just about to embark on some new illustrations for one of my own picture book concepts, so Monsters & Miracles provided a welcome source of inspiration. More than 130 original works of art from picture books are featured in this awe-inspiring collection. In theory, the focus is Jewish picture books - and although there are representative illustrations of biblical stories, beginning with illuminated art from centuries ago, as well as creatures from Jewish mythology, and images of Jewish village life by artists like Simms Taback - the theme is really much broader. Featured are originals by Uri Shulevitz, Eric Carle, Marc Chagall, Lisa Brown (of Lemony Snicket fame), William Stieg (Shrek), Margot Zemach and Maurice Sendak, among many other great artists. 

It's wonderful to be able to see the nuances of the originals - like Eric Carle's delicate tissue paper and acrylic renditions of Noah's Ark, and pen and ink and watercolor originals by Maurice Sendak from the classic, Where the Wild Things Are. Some of Sendak's sensational preliminary studies were also on display.  (For more on the illustrations, visit Diane Browning's blog, Out of the Paintbox.)

Unfortunately, we arrived at the Skirball Center in the late afternoon. We were so captivated by the artwork, the museum staff had to pry us away at closing time. On the up side, the Skirball's wonderful bookstore was open late - and someone had had the foresight to stock many of the picture books featured in the exhibit. We consoled ourselves, revisiting the illustrations in the context of the books for which they were created. 

Although many of the books are beautifully conceived works of art in themselves,  we were struck by their inability to capture the texture, color, dimension and detail of the originals we'd been lucky enough to see. If you have the opportunity to visit Monsters & Miracles, take the kids - and go soon - it closes August 1st!