A far cry from the evening receptions which usually herald the opening of our special exhibitions, Moving Stories: Children’s Books from Page to Screen was launched yesterday with the help of two groups of school children from Bradford and Hebden Bridge, and superstar guest Axel Scheffler—illustrator of The Gruffalo, one of the fifteen titles in the exhibition (and one of my favourites).
Over the last month, our incredibly hard working exhibition team have been putting the finishing touches to the exhibition, making sure all the objects were safely delivered, and transforming two of our galleries into magical spaces in which to show you how the most cherished children’s books make the journey from page to screen. It really is tremendous fun—your little ones will LOVE it.
At the launch, Axel gave the children a fantastic demonstration of his illustration skills, as they shouted out to him what they wanted to see him draw… “Horse!”, “Mouse!”, “Gruffalo!”—of course.
They were also the very first visitors to see Moving Stories, so of course we were keen to hear what they had to say about the exhibition, the launch event, and their best bits.
“Really good, and interesting, and tells you quite a lot about films and books.”—Elliot
“When Axel Scheffler drew the Gruffalo and we got to choose his expression. He was ANGRY!”—Adam
Lucy’s favourite part of the day was exploring the galleries, as well as the Alice talk, because she’s a huge fan of Tim Burton’s adaptation.
Jenny’s class had been involved in some filming for the exhibition, so she enjoyed her 15 minutes of fame. “It was so cool! And I liked the Alice bit with all of the mirrors.”
“ALL OF IT!”—Esther (Nice one, Esther.)
Moving Stories: Children’s Books from Page to Screen is open now until October 2013, and it’s also the inspiration for our summer programme of films and activities.
It’s going to be hot this weekend—pay us a visit and we promise to keep you and your kids cool, entertained and inspired. You can’t ask for much more than that.
