Eric Carle (born June 25, 1929) is a children's book author and illustrator who is most famous for his book The Very Hungry Caterpillar, which has been translated into over 30 languages. Since The Very Hungry Caterpillar was published in 1969, Eric Carle has illustrated more than seventy books, many best sellers, most of which he also wrote, and more than 71 million copies of his books have sold around the world. Image File history File linksMetadata Eric_Carle. ... is the 176th day of the year (177th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a childrens book written by Eric Carle, originally published in 1969. ...

Early life

Born in Syracuse, New York in 1929 to German emigrants Johanna and Erich Carle, Eric moved to Germany with his parents when he was six years old; he was educated there, and graduated from the prestigious art school, the Akademie der bildenden Künste, in Stuttgart. Eric's father was drafted into the German army during World War II, and Eric avoiding the draft in 1944 by being an American citizen.^[1] Carle dreamed of returning to the United States, so he moved to New York City in 1952 with only $40 to his name. Once there, he landed a job as a graphic designer in the promotion department of The New York Times. He was drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War and stationed in Germany.^[1] After returning from the service, he was the art director of an advertising agency for many years. Nickname: Location of Syracuse within the state of New York Coordinates: , City Government  - Mayor Matthew Driscoll (D) Area  - City 66. ... The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (German: Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is an institution of higher education in Vienna, Austria. ... For other uses, see Stuttgart (disambiguation). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Graphic design is the applied art of arranging image and text to communicate a message. ... The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. ... Belligerents United Nations: Republic of Korea Australia Belgium Canada Colombia Ethiopia France Greece Luxembourg Netherlands New Zealand Philippines South Africa Thailand Turkey United Kingdom United States Naval Support and Military Servicing/Repairs: Japan Medical staff: Denmark Italy Norway India Sweden DPR Korea PR China Soviet Union Commanders Syngman Rhee Chung...

Writing and illustrating career

Educator and author Bill Martin Jr., after noticing an illustration of a red lobster Carle had created for an advertisement, asked him to illustrate a story. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? was the result of their collaboration, and became a best-seller. This began Carle’s true career; soon he was writing and illustrating his own stories. His first wholly original book was 1,2,3 to the Zoo, followed quickly by The Very Hungry Caterpillar. William Martin, Jr. ... Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? is a childrens picture book written and illustrated by Bill Martin, Jr. ...

Style

Eric Carle’s art is distinctive and instantly recognizable. His art work is created in collage technique, using hand-painted papers, which he cuts and layers to form bright and colorful images. Many of his books have an added dimension—die-cut pages, twinkling lights as in The Very Lonely Firefly, even the lifelike sound of a cricket’s song as in The Very Quiet Cricket. Carle's readers often use his work as an example and create collages themselves that they often send to Carle; he receives hundreds of letters each week from his young admirers. For other uses, see Collage (disambiguation). ...

The themes of his stories are usually drawn from his extensive knowledge and love of nature— an interest shared by most small children. Carle attempts to make his books not only entertaining, but also to offer his readers the opportunity to learn something about the world around them. When writing, Carle attempts to recognize children's feelings, inquisitiveness and creativity, as well as stimulate their intellectual growth; it is for these reasons (in addition to his unique artwork) that many feel his books have been such a success.

Quotes

“With many of my books I attempt to bridge the gap between the home and school. To me home represents, or should represent; warmth, security, toys, holding hands, being held. School is a strange and new place for a child. Will it be a happy place? There are new people, a teacher, classmates—will they be friendly?

I believe the passage from home to school is the second biggest trauma of childhood; the first is, of course, being born. Indeed, in both cases we leave a place of warmth and protection for one that is unknown. The unknown often brings fear with it. In my books I try to counteract this fear, to replace it with a positive message. I believe that children are naturally creative and eager to learn. I want to show them that learning is really both fascinating and fun.” -Eric Carle

Later life

Eric Carle has two adult children, a son and a daughter. He currently divides his time between the Florida Keys and Blowing Rock, North Carolina. For over 30 years, Carle and his second wife, Bobbie Morrison, lived in Northampton, Massachusetts.^[1] Palm trees in Islamorada The Florida Keys is an archipelago of about 1700 islands in the southeast United States. ... Blowing Rock is a town in North Carolina, situated in both Caldwell and Watauga counties. ... Nickname: Motto: caritas, educatio, justitia Location in Hampshire County in Massachusetts Coordinates: , Country State County Hampshire Settled and Charter granted 1654 Incorporated as a city 1884 Government  - Type Mayor-council city  - Mayor Mary Clare Higgins Area  - City  35. ...

With his wife Bobbie, Eric Carle founded The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, a 44,000 sq ft (4,100 m²) museum devoted to children's books in Amherst on the campus of Hampshire College. The Museum has welcomed over 250,000 visitors since it opened its doors in 2002. Carle received an honorary doctorate from Bates College in 2007.[1] The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art is a museum devoted to the art contained in picture books and especially childrens books. ... Location in Massachusetts Coordinates: Country United States State Massachusetts County Hampshire County Settled 1703 Incorporated 1775 Government  - Type Representative town meeting Area  - Town  27. ... Hampshire College is an experimenting private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. ... Bates College is a private liberal arts college, founded in 1855 by abolitionists, located in Lewiston, Maine, in the United States. ...

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Bernstein, Fred A. (December 13, 2007), "Hungry Caterpillar in the Florida Keys", The New York Times: D8, <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/13/garden/13carle.html?_r=1&oref=slogin> 

External links

• Eric Carle's web site
• The Eric Carle Museum of Picture book Art web site
• Speech by Eric Carle at Bates College Commencement 2007
• Video interview with Eric Carle