Writer Michael J. Rosen (pictured below) and illustrator Stan Fellows (pictured above, photo by Jason Houston) will speak at The University of Findlay’s Mazza Museum in the Virginia B. Gardner Fine Arts Pavilion at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19 as part of this school year’s Wilkin Event Series, which is focusing on visual literacy. Their presentations, collectively titled, “Do You See What I See? Transforming Experience Onto Pages,” will be free and open to the public.

The two will entertain audiences with stories about what goes into the art of children’s picture books, including talent, history, prejudices, personal experience, curiosity and fear. Through visual examples and short readings, they will reference the several books they’ve created together, which include “The Dog Who Walked with God,” “The Cuckoo’s Haiku and Other Birding Poems” and “The Tale of Rescue.”

Rosen is a self-described “dog guy and cat guy” whose writing is inspired by his outdoor childhood explorations. He was initially interested in becoming a family physician, but instead earned a master’s degree in poetry from Columbia University.

“Today, I support my family creating books, collaborating with other artists, and visiting schools,” he explains. “Everyday I realize how fortunate I am that my occupation includes so many things I want to better understand, and hope my readers might, too.”

More information on Rosen can be found at here.

Fellows has been an illustrator for almost 40 years. He paints for magazines such as Martha Stewart Living and National Geographic, for corporate clients and for children’s books. He has also taught watercolor painting and illustration at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and at workshops in Iowa City, Iowa.

For more information on the 2015-2016 Richard E. Wilkin Lecture Series, contact series Faculty Chair Marie Louden-Hanes, Ph.D., at (419) 701-8713 or at [email protected].