26 Facts About Jerry Pinkney

Jerry Pinkney was an American illustrator and writer of children's literature.

Jerry Pinkney's works addressed diverse themes and were usually done in watercolors.

In 2000, Jerry Pinkney received the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award from Kent State University, and, in 2004, he was awarded the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion for outstanding contributions in the field of children's literature.

In 2016, Jerry Pinkney received the Coretta Scott King - Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Jerry Pinkney has partnered with the United States Postal Service, National Park Service, and National Geographic for his illustration work.

Jerry Pinkney was born in Philadelphia on December 22,1939, to Williemae and James Jerry Pinkney.

Jerry Pinkney was the middle child in a family of five siblings.

Jerry Pinkney struggled in school due to dyslexia, but excelled at drawing, even at the young age of 4.

Jerry Pinkney's talent caught the eye of customer and cartoonist John Liney, who worked on the Henry comic strips.

Jerry Pinkney attended the Murrell Dobbins Vocational High School for his secondary education and met his future wife, Gloria Jean Jerry Pinkney, during this time.

Jerry Pinkney graduated from Murrell Dobbins in 1957 and was granted a full scholarship to the Philadelphia Museum College of Art.

Jerry Pinkney only attended the Philadelphia College of Art for a few years, leaving to start a family with wife Gloria.

In 1960, Jerry Pinkney began working for The Rust Craft Greeting Card Company in Dedham, Massachusetts.

Jerry Pinkney later worked at Barker-Black Studio, where he illustrated his first picture book in collaboration with Joyce Cooper Arkhurst called, The Adventures of Spider: West African Folk Tales.

Jerry Pinkney collaborated with the National Geographic Magazine and the National Park Service on the topic of the Underground Railroad.

Jerry Pinkney worked as an educator, teaching at colleges and universities like the University of Delaware, the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York and the University at Buffalo, in Buffalo, New York.

Jerry Pinkney's work was included in the 2015 exhibition We Speak: Black Artists in Philadelphia, 1920s-1970s at the Woodmere Art Museum.

Jerry Pinkney died of a heart attack on October 20,2021, in Sleepy Hollow, New York, at the age of 81.

Jerry Pinkney got his start drawing in pencil and his early works were black and white productions.

Jerry Pinkney used a combination of watercolors and pencils for the majority of his work, along with other materials, such as, "pastel[s], color pencils, and Cray-Pas".

Jerry Pinkney researched the subjects of his works for accuracy, such as the dress of the characters involved and the time periods.

Jerry Pinkney has stated he liked to draw animals the most and to give these characters human features.

Many of Jerry Pinkney's titles are on diverse themes and topics, such as African American history, and Jerry Pinkney has stated his stories are a way for him to "revisit" his childhood.

Jerry Pinkney has received many awards for his work as an illustrator over the years and has been recognized by multiple organizations for his contributions as an artist.

In 1977, the United States Postal Service commissioned Jerry Pinkney to create the first stamp of the Black Heritage postage stamp series, a series honoring prolific African Americans in United States history.

Jerry Pinkney completed a total of eleven portraits for the series, and his designs featured images of Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr.