daria
PEOPLES

Ta-Da!

Year Acquired: 2022


1st Floor, Kids Room Entrance

Ta-Da! is the illustration that graces the final page of the children’s picture book Show The World authored by Angela Dalton. The collage is a combination of oil and oil sticks painted onto khadi paper, with the khadi paper then collaged onto an illustration board. As the last image a reader views, Peoples’ collage piece shows a group of children playing outside engaging in a range of activities — drawing, roller skating, drumming, breakdancing; literally showing the world all that they can be, which can be interpreted as a direct representation of the book’s title. It is said that the first step in Peoples’ creative process is getting to know the manuscript intimately and reading it frequently prior to crafting initial sketches. The images on a page of a children’s book don’t necessarily have to tell the same story as the manuscript, however, Peoples’ deep connection to the story and the clear attempt to interpret how it may be viewed from the perspective of a child is also vividly apparent in this closing image showing children engaged in various forms of creative exploration.

Daria Peoples is an author and illustrator who maintains a lifelong history as a library lover and enthusiast. Often reciting the story of her first job at the ripe age of nine working at her hometown library’s children’s section, Peoples’ love of storytelling made a perfect complement to her childhood love of drawing and painting. After working as a teacher for a decade, Peoples later transitioned to becoming a full-time
author illustrator of children’s books, all while cultivating messaging and community that encourage youth to allow themselves to be seen and heard as citizens of the world.

Ta Da! is a donation from the Downers Grove Public Library Foundation.