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Shakespeare Week Portraits

Marcia Williams’ William Shakespeare

Who created it?

Marcia Williams

  

What is it made of?

Mixed media collage

 

Artist Biography

Marcia Williams is famous for her retellings of classic stories. From Shakespeare and Dickens to the Canterbury Tales and Greek Myths, her humorous comic-strip illustrations are hugely popular all over the world. Recent titles include The Romans: Gods, Emperors and DormiceArchie's WarMy Secret War Diary and Three Cheers for Women! She lives in London. 

“Hello! My name is Marcia Williams and I am a children’s author and illustrator. I am also a proud Patron of Shakespeare Week. I love supporting Shakespeare Week as it gives me a chance to share my love of Shakespeare with young people and, even better than that, I have a chance to see, hear and watch their own amazing creations, productions and thoughts on William Shakespeare, which is such fun.”

www.marciawilliams.co.uk

 

About the Picture

“For Shakespeare Week 2020 I am joining in the exciting Shakespeare Portrait Competition for primary school children by creating my own portrait of Shakespeare. I wanted to think of a way to create a portrait of Shakespeare that could be created by one child or a group of children working together, because sometimes it is fun to work with other people and can lead to stronger ideas. I decided that a collage would be a fun way of taking a new look at the great man and a way of creating something with a friend, a group or just by yourself.

“I think that the main thing about creating a portrait is to create something that reflects what you feel about that person. It has to carry emotion and personality so that your viewer can imagine they have just met that person. Even experts can’t agree on what Shakespeare looked like, or if there is a genuine portrait of him created in his lifetime. So how are we to know? I think the trick will be to make your viewer realise at once that they are looking at Shakespeare. Then they need to be drawn in to have a second look because you have done something just a little different, that moment when you think, ‘Oh, I know what they mean, but I would never have thought of that!’ I can’t wait to see how your imaginations get to work on your portrait of William Shakespeare!”

 

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