Author-Illustrator Cecilia Ruiz Discusses MR. FIORELLO’S HEAD

Welcome back to the Kidlit Kitchen! Grab a seat, pour your favorite drink, and settle in as we embark on a delightful exploration into the captivating world of Cecilia Ruiz’s Mr. Fiorello’s Head. Learn about the inspirations behind the character, Cecilia’s approach to illustrations, the significance of wordless spreads, and more. Join us on a journey through the creative process that brought this fabulous picture book to life.

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RT: I love so much about this book, and I suppose it begins with the concept itself. What specific experiences or ideas inspired the concept of this story? And how did the concept develop as you drafted the story and/or began working on the art?

CR: There are two main sources of inspiration for Mr. Fiorello’s Head.

The first one is my father’s bald head. My dad lost his hair at an early age. I really don’t remember him with hair. The only images I have seen of him with hair are old photos from before I was born. Growing up, we used to make jokes and tease him about his bald head, in particular the few stands that remained atop. We would accuse him of trying to do a very poor combover. My dad always took this teasing and joking lightheartedly. Still, he would sigh and defend himself “I just don’t know what to do with them (the remaining strands). It would be easier if they weren’t there.”

The second source of inspiration is an unexpected one: a lump in my husband Philip’s back. A few years ago, I noticed a lump in his back and asked him to get it checked out.

When the doctor proclaimed that it was a benign fatty lipoma we were equally relieved and amused by the diagnosis. We loved the name so much that we started imagining the lump as a character—Mr. Lipoma, a middle aged man of Italian descent, bald and with a ponytail.

Mr. Lipoma became part of our household. We began drawing him and he started showing up in our daily life—in our sketchbooks, in post-it notes, in birthday cards. I fell in love with Mr. Lipoma, his round shape and the act of drawing him. The more I drew Mr. Lipoma the more I loved him and the more I wanted to know about him. One day, as I was drawing him, I started thinking about his round head and his baldness and what that loss might have meant for him. I thought of my father too.

So, that’s the origin story of the character of Mr. Fiorello, aka Mr. Lipoma. The first drafts of the story had the title Mr. Lipoma’s Head. As the book became a publishable reality, my editor advised that we change the name so people wouldn’t have a negative medical association with it. I agreed and eventually landed on a beautiful and meaningful alternative name—Mr. Fiorello, an Italian name that means “little flower.”

Cecilia and her dad

A card featuring “Mr. Lipoma”

RT: Could you talk a little about your approach to the art? There’s a lot to appreciate here, including the color palette, the “noise” in the illustrations, and the way Mr. Fiorello is framed in each spread.

CR: My illustration style is rooted in traditional printmaking, which I love for mainly for two reasons. One, because it forces you to work with a limited color palette and two, because it gives you a beautiful texture. When I started working on the final art for the book, I challenged myself to make the entire book with only two colors. I needed two colors that, when combined, would give me a dark color for the hair. That’s why I chose the pink and the green–because the result of their overlapping gave me a beautiful, rich brown for the hair.

I started working with only two colors, but soon I realized that I needed a third color. Something that could give Mr. Fiorello’s face a slightly more natural skin color (originally he was way more pink) and, at the same time, something that could signify hope and change in the book. That’s how I decided to incorporate yellow, which slowly but surely, seeps into Mr. Fiorello’s life—bringing a warmer and richer world.

The texture you see in the illustrations is mostly achieved by using a combination of traditionally block-printed rubber stamps and hand-made textures—all scanned, composed and colored digitally in Photoshop.

An early sketch

RT: I really appreciate the quiet power of the wordless spreads. Could you share your thinking around incorporating these moments in the book?

CR: One of the beauties of a wordless spread is that it invites us to stay much longer on the double page, in a sort of contemplative state. It’s a moment we have to reflect and, if there is a character involved, it brings us way closer to them.

In the case of Mr. Fiorello’s Head’s silent spreads, I felt that showing, not telling, was crucial. These silent spreads are the moments in which change is triggered inside Mr. Fiorello’s head. For example, he finally turns away from the mirror, leaves his home and goes out into the world. Or, in a different silent spread, he notices the yellow sun shining outside his window, which makes him look outside. We silently see what he sees—an empty patch of soil in which nothing has grown. So, I believe that as a reader, to witness all this, rather than being told what is happening, is a much more powerful experience.

RT: What aspect of this book are you most proud of?

CR: Adult protagonists have become a rare breed in children’s books, so I am very proud of having a balding middle-aged man as a protagonist. I obviously have a bias towards him, so it is hard for me to gauge how much kids can relate to him. Still, I think (and I hope) everyone, young and old, can relate to and feel for Mr. Fiorello.

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And here's a special treat!

Cecilia is generously offering a chance to win a riso print of Mr. Fiorello on his motorcycle. Simply drop your response or question for Cecilia in the comments below, and you might be the lucky winner.

Don't miss out on this fantastic opportunity!

Cecilia Ruiz is an author, illustrator and graphic designer. Her geometric, stamp-like style lends itself to simple, happy expressions, but her most compelling works are the ones in which melancholy hides within the bold colors and shapes. Cecilia was born and raised in Mexico City and now lives in New York City where she teaches illustration and design.