Children's Literature, Media & Culture (Erasmus Mundus International Master)

Readers who enjoy fiction and informative books can also find some exciting non-fiction books by Ukrainian authors to fulfil their desire to discover and explore. In recent years, informative children’s books from a range of countries have become more visually engaging by applying experimental illustration techniques. According to Grilli, contemporary non-fiction picturebooks are moving away from traditional features of informative texts for children, such as a linear structure; a tendency to explain and describe and an implicit idea of the reader as someone who has to memorise the information. Instead, Grilli highlights that contemporary non-fiction books have the primary purpose of arousing the reader’s senses and are based on the conviction that beauty contributes to the children’s understanding of the world.

Following the contemporary trend in informative picturebooks, Romana Romanyshyn and Andriy Lesiv, founders of Studio Agrafka, wrote and illustrated Sight, glimmer, glow, SPARK, FLASH  (published in English in 2021) as a continuation of Sound, Shhh… Bang… POP… BOOM! . As the authors explain in an interview, their objective while creating both texts was to intertwine art and science in order to portray an emotional and rational perception of the world. This combination is achieved in Sight by presenting a comprehensive study of the functions of the eyes and how we perceive the world. The physiological description of the eyes and the scientific explanation of the visual phenomena can be dry and dull, but through a playful tone and the use of infographics, these authors offer both sufficient and detailed information as well as an aesthetically pleasing text. 

In the interview, Romanyshyn and Lesiv present themselves as two Ukrainian artists who have been working together since they met at Art College, when they were 15 years old, sharing a great interest in design and books. Romanyshyn studied Fine Art and Glass Art, while Lesiv is a specialist in Art Restoration, Art Conservation and Art Studies, with a PhD in Art Criticism. Their visual knowledge and artistry becomes evident in Sight, not only in the aesthetic quality of the illustration but also in the use of geometric forms and colours that reference artists like Kandinski and members of the Bauhaus school. At the same time, the retro style of the infographics is a reference to the designers such as Otto Neurath.  

Romanyshyn and Lesiv’s artistry is also revealed in the use of the materiality of the book in creating an interactive experience for the reader while offering exciting and well-founded data on the sense of sight, both of humans and animals. Children are invited to manipulate the book in order to read sections of texts placed in different angles and directions, moving away from the traditional ways of following text.  Thus, Sight encourages a fully bodily experience, as children must put their own eyes to work in order to fully enjoy the book. In fact, by including optical illusions and search-and-find pictures, Romanyshyn and Lesiv help children to sharpen their eyesight so they can reveal secret messages or find funny effects in the images. 

In Sight, the scientific facts are accompanied by the observations of a little girl who acts both as a protagonist in her adventure of discovery and also as a poetic subject who invites the reader to appreciate their eyes as the medium to admire the beauty in their lives. Through the presence of this character, Sight creates an innovative mix between fiction and non-fiction, which indicates, as Grilli suggests, an encouragement to learn and appreciate the world.

All in all, due to the aesthetic qualities of the illustration; the creative way of presenting the information and the enjoyment offered by the book’s materiality, Sight, glimmer, glow, SPARK, FLASH can easily become a favourite of children inside and outside the classroom. Parents and teachers will find this book helpful when teaching children about sight but also when discussing topics like visual impairments and the need to respect and appreciate people with disabilities. Through the rich illustrations, the poetic text and the holistic design, Romanyshyn and Lesiv provoke young readers to be like the protagonist of Sight and look at the world with wide-open eyes; to yearn to discover the unknown; to see beyond the horizon and to understand and appreciate things that are not self-evident.

 

Book Details

Sight, glimmer, glow, SPARK, FLASH

Romana Romanyshyn, Andriy Lesiv

San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2021

 

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First published: 4 April 2023