ROBERT CARR, POLLYWOGUEN CREATIONS
ABOUT
ROBERT
Presently
Robert Carr is a retired art teacher of thirty-five years and a recipient of the Golden Apple and Harold Grinspoon Awards for his contribution to education. Robert lives in Belchertown, Massachusetts. He spends much of his time with family and friends – real and imaginary. In retirement, he is mostly focused on writing and illustrating children’s picture books.
Education
Robert received an Associate’s Degree in Studio Painting from Holyoke Community College, a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree (as a dual major) in Studio Painting and Art Education at Massachusetts College of Art, and a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Massachusetts.
Professional Career
Robert began his teaching career working for the Town of South Hadley in Massachusetts. He worked there for nineteen years. He started as an elementary teacher and later worked
as a middle school art teacher. He finished his teaching career working for Springfield Public Schools mostly as a Federal Magnet School resource teacher. His mission was to improve learning for students through the arts and through arts integration into other content areas.
Some Thoughts
I love working within the picture book format. It feels like a mini stage of a kind as you move from one scene to another.
I love inventing characters. Sometimes I become them as I walk about the house. I change my voice, my walk, and my words accordingly. The writing process makes me into an actor.
I think the relationship between words and pictures is profoundly unique. What shall the words say and what shall the pictures tell? When can they depend on each other and how much? When should they stand alone?
I think I am fortunate to be an illustrator and an author. It is a zone that requires so many parts of my brain to fire at the same time. In that process, I feel so alive. The curtains open, the play unfolds, and then the curtain closes. Bravo!
The writing process from start to end can be long. When I grow weary of one task, I move to another. This is why I have so many unfinished pieces. Yet, I am grateful, as I often find the solution for the piece I left while working on another. The back burner work continues to be warm in my writing and illustrating world. In time, I return to it in hope that it will be ready to serve.
Self-publishing is difficult for me because of the technology involved. It is a place where I stumble, gripe, and tire. The process is fascinating once you know the moves. It's a hard dance but looks amazing in its final performance. So is life, perhaps.