Earl Bradley (E.B.) Lewis was born on December 16, 1956, in Philadelphia, PA. Inspired by two uncles who were artists, Lewis began taking art classes while he was still in elementary school and developed a particular interest in watercolor. He studied graphic design, illustration, and art education at Temple University. After graduation, Lewis taught art in public schools for 12 years, while continuing to work on his own paintings.
Lewis never considered illustrating children’s books until an editor at Simon & Schuster who had seen Lewis’s watercolors approached him with an offer he couldn’t resist. Within a year, Lewis had complete work on illustrations for his first project, Fire on the Mountain, a re-telling of an Ethiopian folktale about a young shepherd boy who teaches a selfish rich man an important lesson. His subsequent projects include illustrations for a picture book of the class Langston Hughes poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” and work with author Nikki Grimes.
Lewis still juggles his illustration projects with his fine arts works — many of his paintings are in private collections and museums — and workshops he teaches to aspiring artists.
Visit his website to see samples of his work.
Books by this illustrator
