When I think of playing as a little kid, one of the first things that comes to mind is color. Children love to color at restaurants, draw with chalk on the sidewalk, look at colorful books. The lack of color in Julia Jacquette’s Playground of My Mind is a little surprising. The cover of the book has hints of color and the fist page includes a bright blue jacket, but all color then disappears until the last few pages. I wonder why Jacquette decided to use color so sparingly. The lack of color also stands out from her other pieces of artwork on display at the Wellin which use bold colors.
The colorless pages kind of remind me of a coloring book. Perhaps this is what she was going for. Or maybe she wanted the reader/viewer to have to “play” and use his or her imagination to fill in the missing details. Although this book is a memoir, Jacquette allows the reader to add a personal touch by not including every feature. Do people think the book is more effective being mostly black and white?
Beatrice,
I agree with your assessment of Julia Jacquette’s choice to use color sparingly, and I think you bring up a very insightful point. I really like the metaphor of Playground of My Mind being a coloring book–where we fill in the spaces with our own childhood memories. This is all a part of play: the interaction with what is tangibly in front of us as well as our own imaginations. I definitely think this book is more effective as a predominately black and white book, because it makes the rare moments of color even more special, intentional, and full of meaning.