Vashti Harrison | |
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 Harrison at the 2023 Texas Book Festival | |
| Born | 1988 |
| Alma mater | University of Virginia (BA) California Institute of the Arts (MFA) |
| Known for | Illustration |
| Awards | Caldecott Medal (2024) |
Vashti Harrison (born 1988) is an American writer, illustrator and filmmaker based in Brooklyn, New York. Her book, Big, received the 2024 Randolph Caldecott Medal. [1] She was born in Virginia and her films and other artworks are rooted in Caribbean heritage and folklore.
Harrison was born in 1988 to an African American father and an Indian mother, who is from Trinidad and Tobago. She was in TAG (Talented and Gifted) and was described as "quiet and polite student" by her TAG teacher Ms. Corson. She went to Nandua Middle in ACPS. She earned her BA in 2010 from the University of Virginia as a double major in Media Studies and Studio Art with concentrations in Film and Cinematography. [2] She held the Aunspaugh 5th Year Fellowship in the McIntire Department of Art in 2010. [3] She then went on to receive an MFA in Film and Video from California Institute of Arts in 2014, where she attended Disney and DreamWorks Animation classes. [4]
Harrison's films are experimental and rooted in Caribbean heritage and folklore. [5] Her films have been screened at the New York Film Festival, Rotterdam International Film Festival and Edinburgh International Film Festival. She uses public appearances to offer advice for aspiring artists. [6]
Harrison used Instagram to get her first artistic commissions, through this meeting Apple which led to live drawing on iPads in New York. [20] [21] She was inspired to create children's picture books after moving back to Trinidad and Tobago. [22] In 2016 Harrison attended the SCBWI Mid-Atlantic Conference, where she entered and won a drawing competition "Draw This!" to have her illustration shared to all their industry partners. [23] [24] This was the beginning of her illustrating and writing career - two months later, she had an agent - Simon & Schuster. [25] Harrison illustrated Surishtha and Kabir Sehgal's Festival of Colours, the story of Holi (due January 2018). [26] Her illustrations also appear in Cece Loves Science by Kimberly Derting and Shelli R Johannes. [27] Her book (as illustrator) Sulwe won a 2020 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work - Children category. [28] In 2024, her book (as author and illustrator), Big, was awarded the Randolph Caldecott Medal. [1]
The bestselling book Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History tells the story of 40 African-American women who shaped history. [29] [2] [30] Harrison says that she was inspired during Black History Month, when she began to illustrate and write about black women from American history. [31] The book was picked up by the publishers LittleBrown Books, and has both a UK (March 2018) and US (Dec 2017) version. [31] The book includes the stories of Mae Jemison, Katherine Johnson, Maya Angelou and Alice Bell. [32] It was nominated for an NAACP Image Award before it was released. [22] In January 2018 Vashti Harrison appeared on the Daily Show to discuss Little Leaders. [33]
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