On the road: Shepparton Library will be the first stop on the Juvenilia exhibition tour.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Before Australia’s favourite children’s authors and illustrators were hitting the bookshelves, they were children themselves writing, drawing, and dreaming of someday being published.
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The Juvenilia exhibition, launching Thursday, January 19 with special guest Andy Griffiths, is turning the Shepparton Library into a time machine to display their childhood keepsakes.
Illustrations, story books and writings from prolific creators like Graeme Base, Alison Lester, Ursula Dubosarsky, Hazel Edwards and Danny Katz will be on display.
Mr Griffiths will be at the Shepparton Library at 6pm to read some of his juvenilia and meet fans.
“I hope kids who go to the exhibition see that their work is equally valid at their age,” he said.
“When creating, I want them to feel that it’s legitimate writing ... writing for someone, even an audience as small as one, maybe yourself, is your beginning.
“You don’t need a publisher to be a writer.”
Mr Griffiths said he had never been far from his childhood and his pieces included in the exhibition were building blocks to the writer he is today.
“You are who you are. You get better with practice, but that doesn’t necessarily change,” he said.
“It’s amazing to look back and see how much was there to begin with ... I always strive for that child-like sense of freedom in my stories where you don’t have barriers or limitations, anything can happen.”
In person: Popular children's author Andy Griffiths will be at the Juvenilia exhibition launch at the Shepparton Library
Author Aimee Chan is the brains and curator behind the unique exhibition.
Having been a child with an ambition of writing professionally, Ms Chan knows the self-doubt young people can experience in their creative journey.
“It’s important to show kids and young people that what they think is a scrap bit of paper, or not good enough, or even if it’s held together with sticky tape, can become really important — it could be their juvenilia when they grow up.”
Ms Chan encourages everyone to attend as the chance to meet high calibre authors like Mr Griffiths is not something people can experience every day.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for Shepparton. It was a deliberate decision for the regional city to be our first stop,” she said.
“As creatives, there’s not a lot we can do to help at a grassroots level, but we wanted to give back to flood-affected communities and bring attention to towns that can be very overlooked, especially in the arts.”
The Juvenilia exhibition will be at Shepparton Library from January 19 to February 23.
Further details of the moving exhibition, including tour dates and locations, can be found on the Goulburn Valley Libraries website and Facebook page.
