First published in 1940
In The Central Gallery
Dorothy Kunhardt's Pat the Bunny
May 16 - December 7, 2008
Dorothy Kunhardt was already a successful children's author when she wrote the ground-breaking Pat the Bunny for her 3-year-old daughter, Edith. Pat the Bunny is a "touch and feel" book for small children and babies that has been a perennial best seller since its publication in 1940. It is hardly a book in the literary sense, but more a collection of things to do, such as pat the fake fur of a rabbit on one page, feel a bit of sandpaper that stands for "daddy's beard" on another, and look in a mirror on yet another. Kunhardt thought that there was more to books than just words on paper and added elements that could increase a child’s love for reading and learning. The exhibition, taken from the archive of the Meserve Kunhardt Foundation, will explore the evolution of this innovative book as well as other facets of Kunhardt’s rich and varied career.
Support for the exhibition Dorothy Kunhardt’s Pat the Bunny has been provided in part by Random House Children’s Books.
In The East Gallery
Flights into Fantasy: The Kendra and Allan Daniel Collection of Children’s Illustration
July 1 - October 26, 2008
In The East Gallery
Over Rainbows and Down Rabbit Holes: The Art of Children's Books
November 11, 2008 - March 8, 2009
Co-organized with the Santa Barbara Museum of Art