Ohioana Citation for Art Education: 2009
Kenneth and Sylvia Marantz
Columbus OH
Reviewers and Collectors of Picture Books
Kenneth and Sylvia Marantz - Is it picture book or picturebook? For Kenneth and Sylvia it is picturebook!
Kenneth Marantz, professor emeritus of art education at The Ohio State University, states, “My investigation of the
broader art world is narrowed to the concept of the picturebook as an art object.”
Kenneth and Sylvia, both New York City area natives, made their way to
Columbus, Ohio in 1971, via Cornell University and University of Chicago, when Kenneth accepted
the position as chair of the art education department at The Ohio State University. Sylvia, a teacher and librarian in Chicago, joined the
Worthington Schools system and then established the K through 12 library program at the Wellington School.
Over the past 50 years, the Marantzes have studied, reviewed and collected picture books.
They have written thousands of reviews and articles, and lectured to thousands of educators, as well as authored eight books.
Their books include: The Art of Children’s Picture Books: A Selected Reference Guide (2 editions), Picture Books for Looking and
Learning: Awakening Visual Perceptions through the Art of Children’s Books, and Multicultural Picturebooks:
Art for Understanding Others (volume 1 and 2).
Through the years, the Marantzes accumulated a collection of 25,000 books, which they recently donated to the
Kent State University Library. In January 2009, the Marantz Picturebook Collection was dedicated in a
specially designed state-of-the-art section in the Reinberger Children’s Library Center at Kent State.
Their gift to Kent State is a treasure trove that will be available to children, students, and educators for generations to come.
Kent State Unveils Marantz Picturebook Collection
School Library Journal, January 2009
