Illustrator Karen Ritz has a degree in Children's Literature from the University of Minnesota and learned to draw along the way, attending Rhode Island School of Design for summer classes as a high school student. She has illustrated over forty books, including Kate Shelley and the Midnight Express, a Public Television Reading Rainbow feature, Ellis Island, a 1995 Minnesota Book Award Winner, and A Picture Book of Anne Frank. Her work is housed at the Children's Literature Research Collection at the University of Minnesota, and several of her books have been chosen for the annual Society of Illustrator's Show in New York. Karen uses her thirty years of experience in the field to teach about Visual Language at the college and graduate levels. She will customize an elementary school presentation to meet your needs as well. Check her website for details. Karen lives and paints on the 30th floor in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, overlooking the Mississippi River.