Well Stu, Would You?

Well Stu Would You?

By using simple yet provocative questions Well Stu Would You? asks you to think about yourself and others

Original artwork: 6"x9" bristol board. Both the backgrounds and collage elements were hand drawn with marker.

Well Stu Would You? was written in 2009. I was working as a teacher, in a classroom with 3 year-olds and was inspired by one child’s question: “Wouldn’t you be scared to have eyes on the side of your head [like a hammerhead shark.]” I thought this question served as a prime example of how children develop empathy and attempt to see things from another’s perspective, while still firmly still seeing things from their own position. This was the beginning of articulating what empathy might be. Their question stuck with me. It also came at a time in my work where I was drawing characters and patterns regularly, putting my own spin on animals and shapes, trying to simplify their shape and color. I also knew I wanted to tell a story. This was how, Stu the character and the subsequent story was born. As a teacher I was also in the unique position of trying the book out in the classroom as I went along, seeing which parts worked best and which needed revising. The pages are hand drawn and assembled and a limited run of 50 hardcover books were self-published and printed at a local print shop in Somerville, MA. This was my first experience working with a printer to revise and edit a book until my vision of the book was realized.