“Not only are they making things here, but they’re thinking,” Reynolds, an avid supporter of thinking, continues. He went on to reveal to the audience that we are all artists, whether we are aware of the fact or not. Reynolds began his presentation by stating how glad he felt while walking through the Miami Country Day School campus and being met at every turn with art, either professionally made in the Franco gallery or student made in the CFA. A tutorial of how to operate the program, aptly named Animation-ish after Reynolds’ book called Ish, led to many “ooh’s” and “ah’s” from his adoring fans in the audience.

In addition to being an author and illustrator, Reynolds is also the software designer of a program to teach children animation. Reynolds is a Canadian illustrator, animator and author of children’s books, which Reynolds refers to simply as “picture books” intended for audiences of all ages. With it arrived Peter Hamilton Reynolds, a self-proclaimed “grown-up child” and encourager of happiness and dreaming who claims to have a middle name based on the smash-hit Broadway musical. Pink cowboy boots, wide eyes and giggles, and their parents gradually filtered into the theater. In the corner, a laptop stocked with a presentation of words and illustrations- mostly illustrations. It stood equipped with an easel of giant Post-It notes and an army of colorful Sharpies laying in a container underneath.

Ish reynolds