Artist and Author Barbara McClintock to Deliver 2025 Barbara Elleman Research Library Lecture at The Carle

(Amherst, MA)—The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art is pleased to welcome award-winning artist and author Barbara McClintock as guest speaker for the 2025 Barbara Elleman Research Library (BERL) Lecture on Saturday, May 10, at 1 pm at the Museum. The lecture is free with Museum admission.  

The 13th annual BERL lecture continues this year, sadly without its founder Barbara Elleman, who passed away in October 2024. McClintock’s talk, entitled For the Love of a Dog, addresses how she illustrated Tomie dePaola’s last complete manuscript. In Where Are You, Brontë?, the children’s book legend tells an emotional and deeply personal story about overcoming his grief after the loss of his pet. This touching story about love, loss, and remembrance has received four starred reviews and been described as “a gentle delight, simultaneously honoring both the dog dePaola lost and the artist we lost in turn” (Kirkus Reviews). A book signing and light reception will follow the program.  

Elleman’s book, The Worlds of Tomie dePaola, was an inspiring resource for McClintock in preparation for illustrating dePaola’s story. In McClintock’s own words, “The message of Where Are You, Brontë? goes beyond the loss of Tomie’s beloved dog and helps find a way forward through grief for anyone who was deeply loved.”

“Barbara Elleman was deeply loved by her museum family at The Carle, the librarians, teachers, researchers, and book people whose lives she enriched, and by her dear friend Tomie. Her love and passion for books for young readers continues on for every child who discovers new books and finds comfort in old favorites in her marvelous library at The Carle. Barbara is right here, still with us, in our hearts forever,” said McClintock.

McClintock is an illustrator and author of over 40 books for children. Her books have received numerous awards and citations, including five New York Times Best Illustrated Picture Book Awards, three ALA Notable Book Citations, a Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor Award, and two Golden Kite Honor Awards. Her work has been exhibited at The Carle: Barbara McClintock: The Heartaches of a French Cat in 2011 and in the exhibition, Natalie Merchant and Barbara McClintock: Leave Your Sleep in 2013 - 2014. A former Carle Trustee, McClintock’s art has been featured in more than seven group exhibitions. McClintock donated work from Heartaches of a French Cat to The Carle’s collection.  

“We are thrilled to welcome Barbara McClintock back to The Carle, this time headlining our annual professional lecture. Her art has graced our galleries and is part of The Carle’s permanent collection,” said Jennifer Schantz, executive director at The Carle.  

The BERL Lecture is an annual event featuring the country’s top scholars, book collectors, researchers, editors, authors, and illustrators in children’s literature. Past BERL Lecture speakers include Patricia Lee Gauch (2011), Betsy Hearne (2012), Peter Sís (2013), Timothy Young (2014), Jerry Pinkney (2015), Grace Lin (2016), Steven Kellogg (2017), Anita Silvey (2018), Neal Porter (2019), Wendell Minor (2022), Dr. Jonda C. McNair (2023), and Brian Pinkney (2024).

About the Barbara Elleman Research Library (BERL)

Established in 2003, the BERL is a non-circulating research collection of more than 1,500 volumes of professional resources and children’s books devoted to the study of children’s literature and the visual arts. The library is named for former Museum Trustee and Book Links magazine Founding Editor Barbara Elleman. Together with her late husband Don Elleman, she generously contributed the books that form the core of the collection. Elleman died in October 2024.  

The unique organization of the collection highlights areas of interest such as author and illustrator biographies, literary criticism, illustration studies, and more. It is ideally suited for students, teachers, librarians, and other professionals interested in the study and use of children’s literature and the visual arts. The Picture Book Archive contains over 1,500 picture books from prominent illustrators from the 1970s to the early 2000s and titles from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In addition to being a resource for the public, the collection is often drawn upon for The Carle’s exhibitions and programming.  

About Barbara Elleman  

Barbara Elleman (1934–2024) received her bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and her master’s degree in library science from the University of Denver. She worked as a school and public librarian before accepting a position in 1975 as a reviewer and editor for the American Library Association’s Booklist magazine. In 1990 she created and became editor-in-chief of Book Links. After leaving ALA in 1996, Elleman was named Distinguished Scholar of Children’s Literature at Marquette University in Milwaukee where she lectured and promoted the use of children’s books in the School of Education.  

Books written by Elleman include The Worlds of Tomie dePaola: The Art and Stories of the Legendary Artist and Author (2021) and Virginia Lee Burton: A Life in Art (2002). Elleman also guest curated, in 2009, two highly acclaimed exhibitions of original work by Virginia Lee Burton and Tomie dePaola. During her career, Elleman was particularly attracted to the art of the picture book, with her book collection reflecting that interest. 

About The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art   

Founded by Eric and Barbara Carle in 2002, The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art is the international champion of picture book art. Situated on 7.5 acres in Amherst, Massachusetts, The Carle houses a rich and deep collection of art of more than 300 picture book artists, including Eric Carle (author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar), and illuminates its collection through exhibitions, education, programming, and art-making—making it a critical resource for picture book artists and authors, and art-loving communities locally, nationally, and abroad. The Carle’s mission is to elevate picture book art and inspire a love of art and art creation. Since opening its doors more than 20 years ago, The Carle has welcomed more than one million visitors—plus more than four million additional museumgoers who have enjoyed its touring exhibitions around the world. 

For further information, please contact: Amanda Domizio, Amanda Domizio Communications, 347-229-2877 / amanda@domiziopr.com