PATITO FEO

or

THE UGLY DUCKLING

An illustration for Coso De Illustradores, a spanish-language blog for children's illustrators. The theme this week was "ugly duckling" and I recalled that my husband told me he used to be called Pato Feo as a kid. He said it was because he walked with his feet pointing out (I was and am pigeontoed, so between us we have great tread), and his hair stuck up.

As my own Pato Feo pointed out, this city looks nothing like Kiriat Yam, where he grew up. I think the two main influences on the architecture were the illustrations of Bemelman's Madeline, and Charles Addams' rendition of "Little Jumping Joan." So maybe it's a cross between Paris and New York, 1920 and today. Oh, and the kids I see waiting for school buses in the morning - they always look tiny and vulnerable with their huge backpacks.