Illustrator and Illustrator-Author Study

          Edward Gorey's work has been a major influence over the years in the vast world of illustration. His black and white, sketch style, depictions of whimsical, dark, and endearing characters have led to his status of being one of the greatest illustrators of the era. His most notorious work has always been The Gashleycrumb Tinies, an alphabet book of alliteration and uniquely fatal mishaps. Very dark, but also tongue-in-cheek, his grim, strange, and whimsical, pen and ink sketches have touched something internally in many viewers, and his work has an almost cult-like following whose enjoyment of his illustrations has spanned the decades. The grim enjoyment he conveys in his art, and how his viewers have embraced it, almost seemed to have granted permission to illustrators to incorporate a darker, more satirical, element into simple illustration. Though some may question the appropriateness of his work for children, there has always been a case for providing a necessary outlet for children to learn to feel less positive emotions safely and healthily. 

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