Background
Byrd was born on January 11, 1942 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States. He is the son of Robert and Phoebe Byrd.
Trenton Junior College, Trenton, Missouri, United States
Robert attended Trenton Junior College and finished it in 1963.
Philadelphia Museum College of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Robert studied at Philadelphia Museum College of Art and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1966.
(In a little-known Brothers Grimm tale, when a grouchy bea...)
In a little-known Brothers Grimm tale, when a grouchy bear sparks a feud between air and land animals, he must apologize for his mischief.
https://www.amazon.com/Bear-Bird-King-Robert-Byrd/dp/0525451188/?tag=2022091-20
1994
(With the help of the brains and magic of his brave and cl...)
With the help of the brains and magic of his brave and clever wife Oonagh, Finn MacCoul bests the fearsome giant, Cucullin, in a retelling of an ancient Irish folktale.
https://www.amazon.com/Finn-MacCoul-His-Fearless-Wife/dp/0525459715/?tag=2022091-20
1999
(Famous in his time as a painter, prankster, and philosoph...)
Famous in his time as a painter, prankster, and philosopher, Leonardo da Vinci was also a musician, sculptor, and engineer for dukes, popes, and kings. What remains of his work-from futuristic designs and scientific inquiry to artwork of ethereal beauty-reveals the ambitious, unpredictable brilliance of a visionary, and a timeless dreamer. Robert Byrd celebrates this passionate, playful genius in a glowing picture book replete with the richness and imagination of Leonardo's own notebooks. Twenty lavish spreads, including side drawings, supplemental texts, and quotes from Leonardo's writings, highlight distinct periods and make the master's art, jokes, explorations, and inventions wonderfully vivid and accessible. A striking tribute to an irrepressible mind and to the potential within all who are curious.
https://www.amazon.com/Leonardo-Beautiful-Dreamer-Robert-Byrd/dp/0525470336/?tag=2022091-20
2003
Byrd was born on January 11, 1942 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States. He is the son of Robert and Phoebe Byrd.
Robert attended Trenton Junior College and finished it in 1963. Later, he studied at Philadelphia Museum College of Art and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1966.
Following high school, Byrd joined the U.S. Navy in 1961, leaving in 1962 to attend Trenton Junior College. During 1976-77 he was an instructor in illustrating at Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia. From 1977 he worked at Moore College of Art, Philadelphia.
His first solo project was Marcella Was Bored, in which a cat, bored with her usual activities, runs away from home, where she quickly discovers that the sympathy and attention she receives from her family are what she really wants after all. A reviewer for Growing Point noted that in this telling of a familiar story, the cat stands in for the usual portrait of a dissatisfied teenager, and the humor of the incongruities resulting from the switch from human to cat might shed new light on “an all too familiar family situation.” School Library Journal contributor Lorraine Douglas dubbed Byrd’s illustrations “charming” and declared: “Filled with details, these gently colored scenes are fdled with activity and portray Marcella as a childlike and expressive feline.”
For his next solo effort, Byrd retold the Brothers Grimm tale The Bear and the Bird King. This little-known fable highlights how easily and how foolishly wars get started. School Library Journal critic Linda Boyles described Byrd’s successful adaptation as “an easy narrative” with “bright watercolor washes that are filled with humor and movement” and “complement the text.” Other reviewers found Byrd’s busy illustrations equally enjoyable, as they set the story in the eighteenth century, with birds in frock coats, top hats, and bustled costumes. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly noted the “verve and humor that infuse” Byrd’s retelling and “are reflected and multiplied in wonderfully detailed artwork.”
Byrd adapted a Celtic myth in Finn MacCoul and His Fearless Wife. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews lauded the illustrations as “elegant” and filled with historical detail. They “not only spur interest in the proceedings (of the plot) but convey a palpable sense of the Celtic past,” according to the critic.
(With the help of the brains and magic of his brave and cl...)
1999(Famous in his time as a painter, prankster, and philosoph...)
2003(In a little-known Brothers Grimm tale, when a grouchy bea...)
1994(The Hairy Man had gotten Pappy and he was going to get Wi...)
1970Quotations: "I always drew as a child, but oddly enough never thought of it as a profession, or what you did when you grew up. Out of all my creative work, illustrating children's books gives me the greatest satisfaction. It is my 'fine art'. It keeps me going aesthetically. The books have a permanence and a quality of something meaningful."
Robert is a member of the Graphic Artists Guild, Philadelphia Children's Reading Round Table, and the Philadelphia College of Art Alumni Association.
Robert Byrd is married. He has two children: Robby, Jennifer.