Zhenya Gay (born Eleanor Byrnes) (1906–1978) was an American writer and illustrator.
Biography
editEleanor Barnes was born in 1906 in Norwood, Massachusetts and, died August 3, 1978. She attended Columbia University, where she studied with Solon Borglum and Winold Reiss.[1]
Her first artistic jobs as a freelancer were creating movie posters, newspaper advertisements, and costume designs for theater productions.[2]
She spent several years traveling and living in Europe, Mexico, and Central America.[3] In 1954, she left New York City for the Catskill Mountains.[2]
She was in a relationship with Jan Gay (born Helen Reitman, daughter of Ben Reitman), a children's book writer.[4]
In addition to her book illustrations, Gay also created standalone artworks, including aquatints, lithographs, and etchings. Her works are held in the permanent collections of several museums, including the University of Michigan Museum of Art,[5][6] the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco,[7] and the Seattle Art Museum.[8]
The Kerlan Collection at the University of Minnesota holds much of her work,[2] as does the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at the University of Southern Mississippi.[2]
Gay died on August 3, 1978.[2]
Selected works
edit- Pancho and His Burro, 1930[2]
- The Shire Colt, 1931[3]
- The Poems of Catullus, Translated by Horace Gregory, Illustrated by Zenya Gay. NY, Covici friede inc. publishers, 1933
- Sakimura, 1936[9]
- Whistlers' Van, 1937
- The Ballad of Reading Gaol by Oscar Wilde, 1937[10]
- Manuelito of Costa Rica, 1940[3]
- Look!, 1952[3]
- Jingle Jangle Story, 1953[2]
- The Major and His Camels by Miriam E. Mason. Macmillan, 1953.
- The Sugarbush Family by Miriam E. Mason. Macmillan, 1954.[11]
- Wonderful Things, 1954[2]
- The Dear Friends, 1959[2]
- I'm Tired of Lions, 1961[2]
- Who's Afraid?, 1965[3]
References
edit- ^ "StackPath". www.lib.usm.edu. Retrieved 2022-10-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Zhenya Gay Papers". www.lib.usm.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ a b c d e "Zhenya Gay". Britannica Kids. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ Ryan, Hugh (2019-03-05). When Brooklyn Was Queer: A History. St. Martin's Press. p. 168. ISBN 978-1-250-16991-4.
- ^ "Exchange: Nude". exchange.umma.umich.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ "Exchange: Cat". exchange.umma.umich.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ "Nude reclining - Zhenya Gay". FAMSF Search the Collections. 2015-05-08. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ "Seattle Art Museum: Artists: Zhenya Gay". Seattle Art Museum. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
- ^ "Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
- ^ Wilde, Oscar; Rascoe, Burton; Gay, Zhenya; Fass, John S; Limited Editions Club; Harbor Press; Limited Editions Club; Limited Editions Club Collection (Library of Congress) (1937). The ballad of Reading Gaol. OCLC 1669373.
- ^ "Book Review: The Sugarbush Family". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2023-03-15.
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