Joanne Fitzgerald was a

Canadian artist The following is a list of Canadian artists working in visual or plastic media (including 20th-century artists working in video art, performance art, or other types of new media). See other articles for information on Canadian literature, music, ci ...

, illustrator and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

. Twice-shortlisted for the Canadian Governor General's Award for Children's Illustration, her book ''Dr. Kiss Says Yes'' won the award in 1991.

Early life and education

Fitzgerald was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, showing promise as an artist from an early age. She studied fine art at

Mount Allison University Mount Allison University (also Mount A or MtA) is a Canadian primarily undergraduate liberal arts university located in Sackville, New Brunswick, founded in 1839. Like other liberal arts colleges in North America, Mount Allison does not parti ...

, graduating with a Baccalaureate in Fine Arts in 1977.

Career

Early in her career, Fitzgerald was a staff illustrator at the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

. Her subsequent work as a magazine illustrator brought her a following among children's magazine publishers, and drew her into children's textbook illustrations. In turn, she began to illustrate and then write children's books. Later in life, she returned to fine art, studying and painting at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

. She was also an early organizer of th
Lymphedema Association of Ontario
and served as president and spokesperson in establishing the organization in 2002–2004.

Works

Illustrated children's books

*''Plain Noodles'' (also published as ''Baby Boat'') (1989); story by Betty Waterton *''Emily's House'' (1990); story by Niko Scharer *''Doctor Kiss Says Yes'' (1991; re-issued 2012); story by

Teddy Jam Matthew Cohen (30 December 1942 – 2 December 1999) was a Canadian writer who published both mainstream literature under his own name and children's literature under the pseudonym Teddy Jam. History Matt Cohen was born in Montreal, son of Morri ...

Matt Cohen *''Ten Small Tales'' (1993); story by Celia Lotteridge *''Jacob's Best Sisters'' (1996); story by

a.k.a. Matt Cohen *''The Little Rooster and the Diamond Button'' (2001); story by Celia Barker Lotteridge *''When You Get A Baby'' (2002); story by Sharon Jennings *''Circus Play'' (2002); story by Anne Laurel Carter *''This is Me and Where I Am'' (2004); story by Joanne Fitzgerald *''The Blue Hippopotamus'' (2007); story by

Phoebe Gilman Phoebe Gilman (April 4, 1940 – August 29, 2002) was a Canadian-American children's book author and illustrator. Her books were notable for their strong lead female characters. Her book ''Something from Nothing'', adapted from an old Yiddish ...

*''Yum! Yum!'' (2008); story by Joanne Fitzgerald

Awards and recognition

* ''Dr. Kiss Says Yes'' (1991) – Governor General's Award for English Language Children's Illustration * ''Ten Small Tales'' (1993) – IODE Jean Throop Awardhttps://bookcentre.ca/awards/iode-jean-throop-award/ Jean Throop Award * ''The Little Rooster and the Diamond Button'' (2001) – Mr. Christie's Book Awards Diamond Pin * ''The Blue Hippopotamus'' (2007) – Finalist:

Governor General's Award The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields. The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...

for English Language Children's Illustration

Joanne Fitzgerald Illustrator in Residence Award and Program

The Joanne Fitzgerald Illustrator in Residence Program was established in 2013 to honour Joanne Fitzgerald and her contributions to children's literature. The award and program are a joint project of the Canadian chapter of the

International Board on Books for Young People The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) is an international non-profit organization committed to bringing books and children together. The headquarters of the IBBY are located in Basel, Switzerland. IBBY history In 1952, Jella Lepm ...

(IBBY Canada), the Canadian Urban Libraries Council and participating libraries which have included the

Toronto Public Library Toronto Public Library (TPL) (french: Bibliothèque publique de Toronto) is a public library system in Toronto, Ontario. It is the largest public library system in Canada, and in 2008 had averaged a higher circulation per capita than any other pu ...

and the

Edmonton Public Library The Edmonton Public Library (EPL) is a publicly funded library system in the city of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, available for use by any member of the public. Library cards are free to all Edmontonians; as part of its centennial in 2013, the Edmo ...

. The program awards a jury-selected, published Canadian children's book illustrator with a residency at a Canadian urban library each October. The winning Illustrator in Residence leads a program which explains and promotes children's book illustration. Activities include art activities for classes of children, presentations for adults, presentations at nearby high schools and colleges, portfolio reviews for aspiring illustrators, interviews with the press and the display of the illustrator's work in the library. Past winners join experts from the participating library and IBBY Canada as jurists for the following year. Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 program was cancelled, with no winner chosen. Returning in 2021, the program now leverages emergent technology to provide an online, interactive experience between the illustrator and the adult and children audiences, extending the program's geographic availability.

Winners

References

External links

Joanne Fitzgerald at Library of Congress Authorities, with 5 catalogue recordsIBBY Program DescriptionCanadian Urban Libraries Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzgerald, Joanne 1956 births 2011 deaths Art Students League of New York alumni Artists from Montreal Canadian children's book illustrators Governor General's Award-winning children's illustrators Mount Allison University alumni Writers from Montreal