Silhouettes have always been a part of our art, and were very popular in the Victorian age. It’s the closest approximation to the real object that we wish to depict. Jan Pieńkowski has spent his life, starting in Poland but moving out through Europe until he reached England, working in the arts. His silhouettes have delighted children and adults alike as they’re combined with playful images and delicate colors that almost take on the feel of stained glass.
Jan is well-known for his Meg and Mog books with Helen Nicoll, as well as his pop-up book, Haunted House, which won the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1980. Here’s a documentary by Illustrators on Illustration that include Jan and so many other wonderful illustrators telling their stories about their love of illustration and the House of Illustration:
http://youtu.be/ynxuIONt3IA
And read more about Jan in this Guardian article from 2008: Jan Pienkowski – Meg, Mog, and Other Monsters.
