Climbing the Gingko Tree
Illustration © D. Yael Bernhard
This illustration from my picture book Just Like Me, Climbing A Tree (Wisdom Tales Press, 2015) shows a young girl in China climbing a gingko tree. The book features a dozen trees from all over the world, and describes in rhyming verse the children who interact with them. This was my fourth multicultural children’s book that travels around the world, showing both the diversity of different cultures and the sameness of kids everywhere. Children connecting with nature is the underlying theme in this book, with information about each tree in the back for readers who want to learn more.
I’ve always loved gingko trees, both for their beautiful fan-shaped leaves and their medicinal properties, which are purported to be greatest as the leaves turn golden in autumn. Gingko trees are native to China and venerated by Buddhists and Taoists throughout Asia. They are able to resist pollution, insects, and disease, making them one of the oldest trees known to humanity, with the unique ability to thrive in urban environments. Female trees produce foul-smelling flowers, however, so a more popular method of reproducing the tree is by cloning male trees, made possible by its sprouting aerial roots.
The illustration stretches across a double-page spread of the book, with text printed in the blank white area on the left. My model for the girl was a nimble little friend of my daughter’s, adopted from Guatemala, who was indeed prone to climbing not only trees, but also fences, clotheslines, or anything within her reach. I changed her facial features slightly to make her look more Chinese. The book is dedicated to this girl and her parents, and I painted her again for the dedication page, dressed in American garb:
The illustration is meant to evoke a moment in a story conjured in young readers’ minds. I imagined this girl happily sneaking away during a family outing and climbing up into a golden sanctuary. A tree is a whole world to a child, and I wanted my book to evoke this feeling of connecting to those gentle giants, so patient and strong. Nature quietly accepts children into her gentle embrace, offering both solace and wonder.
Architecture is a crucial element in creating a visual sense of place, and I spend a lot of time researching it for my illustrations. I enjoyed the distinctive shapes of the buildings in this Chinese park. To create a sense of height and depth, I chose a 3/4 view of the buildings far below in the distance.
You can order a signed copy of Just Like Me, Climbing a Tree from my webstore, find it on Amazon, or order from the Wisdom Tales website.
A good week to all!
D Yael Bernhard
http://dyaelbernhard.com
children's books • fine art • illustration
posters • cards • calendars
D. Yael Bernhard is a professional illustrator, fine art painter, writer, arts-in-ed teacher, and health & nutrition coach. She has illustrated and/or written over forty children’s books, many with educational and multicultural themes. Her work has been featured by religious publishers, environmental causes, and healers and midwives all over the world. Find her art at the links above, and visit her illustrated nutrition newsletter, The Art of Health, here.