Created July 30, 2024 by Sarah Diamond
The SCBWI is saddened to have learned that Dilys Evans, a giant in the field of children’s book illustration, died on July 23, surrounded by her loving family.
As an author, a painter, and an agent she has represented and mentored some of the most acclaimed illustrators of our time, and as an author, her book, Show and Tell: Exploring the Fine Art of Children’s Book Illustration, is an indispensable guide in how to look for the perfect marriage of art and text in a children’s book. In 2008 it was named The School Library Journal Best Book of the Year.
Perhaps her most memorable achievement was the founding, in 1980, of The Original Art, an annual exhibition in New York featuring the best children’s book illustration of the year. Since 1990 the Original Art exhibit has been held at the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. A highlight of each exhibit is the awarding of the Dilys Evans Founders Award for the most promising newcomer to the field. SCBWI was fortunate to have her speak at many of our conferences and events. Generous and knowledgeable, she guided numerous illustrators into successful careers. She will be terribly missed, but her legacy will live on in the art and the artists she has inspired through both her mentoring and her books.
SCBWI co-founder Lin Oliver said, “Dilys Evans devoted her life to the art of creating children's books. Through her work and her SCBWI contributions and teaching, she brought forward a generation of children's book illustrators and helped us all realize that picture books are a legitimate and high art form. Her contribution was immense."