THE FILM

Virginia Lee Burton: A Sense of Place is a 1-hour documentary film that explores the life and art of Virginia Lee Burton. Considered to be a “Renaissance woman,” Burton was an innovative children’s book author/illustrator, a visionary textile designer who also painted, and sculpted in granite, marble and wood. Her art and literature remain an enduring part of America’s cultural heritage.

The film project provides viewers access to a treasure-trove of archival materials, never-before seen photographs, personal documents, sketchbooks and original manuscripts, which were used in telling the story of the life and art of Virginia Lee Burton. This finely wrought film includes intimate interviews with family and friends and takes the viewer to places on Cape Ann that inspired Jinnee, including her home and studio, Folly Cove, Gloucester Harbor and the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.

To purchase a copy of Virginia Lee Burton: A Sense of Place, click here.

“Virginia Lee Burton was the most important woman to create picture books for children in the 20th Century. Now we have a meticulously-crafted documentary of this remarkable woman, showing how her personal and artistic lives intersect. Anyone who loves Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel and The Little House will be fascinated by the creative genius behind these books.”
–Anita Silvey, author 100 Best Books for Children

“Virginia Lee Burton is revealed in all her glorious aspects in this wonderful documentary: master storyteller, brilliant artist, innovative designer and lovingmother. What emerges most clearly about Burton, in addition to her uncompromising artistic integrity, is her unquenchable joie de vivre. This program should be required viewing for every classroom.”
–Betsy Groban, Vice President and Publisher, Houghton Mifflin & Company

“This engaging documentary provides an exquisite and sophisticated tapestry of the life and career of Virginia Lee Burton. The rich visual narrative is poignantly complemented by the wonderful array of personal reminiscences. From the purposeful insights of 2nd graders to the interpretations of noted scholars, there is a multi-valence and gravitas that does full justice to children’s books and illustration through the lens of one of the genre’s Promethean pioneers in America.”
–H. Nichols B. Clark, Founding Director
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Amherst, MA

“Virginia Lee Burton: A Sense of Place is a treasure the filmmakers have made available for all to see.”
–Robert Gardner, Ethnographic filmmaker/author, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA

Virginia Lee Burton: A Sense of Place

Produced by Red Dory Productions, Gloucester, MA
in partnership with
Searchlight Films, Bernardston, MA