Ron Lightburn

Readings

- A reading and discussion of any of his picture books, chapter books and/or book covers with a focus on his most recent picture book, Juba This, Juba That.
- A reading of Driftwood Cove or Pumpkin People with author Sandra Lightburn, followed by a detailed discussion of the text and illustrations and the collaborative process between an author/illustrator team.
- A drawing demonstration. (Host to provide flip chart/pad and black marker).
- A demonstration of how to make a pumpkin person, if host is able to provide eight cornstalks. (Ron may be able to provide cornstalks for local readings.)
- Maximum of two, one hour readings per day.

Special Equipment:

Ron will require a flip chart/pad plus a black marker for drawing demonstrations.

Book Sales:

Ron will bring copies of his books to the readings for students to purchase and have autographed, if requested.

Biography

Ron Lightburn was born in 1954 in Cobourg, Ontario. In 1958 his family moved to British Columbia where Ron attended school in West Vancouver and Chemainus. He completed his secondary education in Calgary, Alberta and then attended the Alberta College of Art from 1973 - 75. Following a move to Victoria, B.C. in 1975 he began his illustration career with work for a variety of advertising, editorial and government clients. In 1984 he won the Western Magazine Award for Illustration.

His career as a children's book illustrator was launched with his Governor General's Award-winning artwork for Waiting for the Whales in 1991. Since then he has won several other awards and has become internationally renowned for his visual storytelling skills and range of illustration styles, from the touching realism of How Smudge Came to the exuberant whimsy of Pumpkin People. His picture books have been published in seven countries and six languages with total sales of over 600,000 copies. He has given illustration presentations and workshops to audiences of all ages in Canada from Victoria to St. John’s. During the past thirty years his artwork has graced the covers of over sixty books and has been featured in magazines, calendars, posters and advertisements across North America. His client list includes the Province of Nova Scotia, the Town of Kentville, the Province of British Columbia, Aliant, McDonald’s Restaurants, The Walt Disney Company, CP Hotels, Heritage Canada Foundation and General Foods. His artwork has been recognized and exhibited by The Society of Illustrators in New York and is included in the permanent collections of Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa, the Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books in Toronto and the Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy in Toronto. In 2005 his paintings for A Poppy Is to Remember were selected to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in the Library and Archives Canada publication Read Up On It.

A resident of Nova Scotia since 1997, Ron lives in the beautiful Annapolis Valley with his partner Sandra.