Robert Byrd is an author

Author

An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...

 and illustrator

Illustrator

An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...

 from Haddonfield, New Jersey

Haddonfield, New Jersey

Haddonfield is a borough located in Camden County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough had a total population of 11,593....

.

Following his attendance of highschool, Byrd joined the U.S. Navy in 1961, leaving in 1962 to attend Trenton Junior College. After a year at Trenton, he switched to study at the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts (Philadelphia)

University of the Arts (Philadelphia)

The University of the Arts is one of the United States' oldest universities dedicated to the arts. Its campus makes up part of the Avenue of the Arts in Center City, Philadelphia...

.)

Robert wrote and illustrated five of his own picture books, including Leonardo, Beautiful Dreamer, a picture book chronicling, thematically, the life, and work of Leonardo Da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...

.

"I always drew as a child, but oddly enough never thought of it as a profession, or what you did when you grew up..Out of all my creative work, illustrating children's books gives me the greatest satisfaction. It is my 'fine art.' It keeps me going aesthetically. The books have a permanence and a quality of something meaningful."

He has also illustrated at least sixteen books for other authors, including Jack Stokes

Jack Stokes

John Edward Stokes was a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1967 to 1985, and was Speaker of the legislature from 1977 to 1981. Stokes was a member of the New Democratic Party.Stokes was born in Schreiber, Ontario, and was educated in the area...

, Robert Kraus

Robert Kraus

Robert Kraus was an American children's author, cartoonist and publisher. Founder and publisher of Windmill Books, author and illustrator of award-winning children's books, Kraus began as a cartoonist and cover artist for The New Yorker.- Biography :Robert Kraus was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin...

, Bruce Kraus

Bruce Kraus

Bruce A. Kraus is an American politician and businessman from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He has served since January 2008 on Pittsburgh City Council, representing the 3rd district neighborhoods of South Side Flats, South Side Slopes, Beltzhoover, Knoxville, Arlington, Arlington Heights, Allentown,...

, Laura Amy Schlitz

Laura Amy Schlitz

Laura Amy Schlitz is an American author of children's literature. She is a librarian and storyteller at Park School in Baltimore County, Maryland....

, Kathleen Krull

Kathleen Krull

Kathleen Krull is an author of children's books.Krull was born in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri in 1952 and grew up in Wilmette, Illinois. She graduated from Regina Dominican High School in Wilmette, studied music at , and then earned a B.A...

, Marilyn Jager Adams

Marilyn Jager Adams

Dr. Marilyn Jager Adams was born on December 14, 1948. She holds a Ph.D. from Brown University in cognitive psychology and developmental psychology and is internationally regarded for her research and applied work in the areas of cognition and education....

, and Paula Fox

Paula Fox

Paula Fox is an American author of novels for adults and children and two memoirs. Her novel The Slave Dancer received the Newbery Medal in 1974; and in 1978, she was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal. More recently, A Portrait of Ivan won the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis in 2008.Her...

.

His work has been exhibited by the Society of Illustrators

Society of Illustrators

The Society of Illustrators is a professional society based in New York City. Founded in 1901, the mission of the Society is to promote the art and appreciation of illustration, as well as its history...

, the Philadelphia Art Alliance

Philadelphia Art Alliance

The Philadelphia Art Alliance is a multidisciplinary arts center located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. It is the oldest multidisciplinary arts center in the United States for visual, literary and performing arts...

, and The Rosenfeld Gallery]], in Philadelphia. He has also been exhibited in various locations within Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, and Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

. His work is a part of permanent collections at the Free Library of Philadelphia

Free Library of Philadelphia

The Free Library of Philadelphia is the public library system serving Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:History of the Free Library of Philadelphia: Initiated by the efforts of Dr...

 and the Philadelphia College of Art.
He has won the Golden Kite Award

Golden Kite Award

The Golden Kite Awards are given annually by the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators to recognize excellence in children’s literature. Instituted in 1972, the Golden Kite Awards are the only children’s literary award judged by a jury of peers...

, and received other accolades from the Children's Book Council

Children's Book Council

According to their website, the Children's Book Council is a United States "nonprofit trade association of publishers and packagers of trade books and related materials for children and young adults."...

 and the Society of Illustrators

Society of Illustrators

The Society of Illustrators is a professional society based in New York City. Founded in 1901, the mission of the Society is to promote the art and appreciation of illustration, as well as its history...

.

Robert is a member of the Graphic Artists Guild

Graphic Artists Guild

The Graphic Artists Guild is a guild of graphic designers, illustrators, and photographers and is organized into seven chapters around the United States.-History:In the mid-1960s most automobile advertising contained illustrations, not photographs...

, Philadelphia Children's Reading Round Table, and the Philadelphia College of Art Alumni Association.
And he teaches Children's Book Illustration at the University of the Arts

University of the Arts (Philadelphia)

The University of the Arts is one of the United States' oldest universities dedicated to the arts. Its campus makes up part of the Avenue of the Arts in Center City, Philadelphia...

, and Moore College of Art and Design

Moore College of Art and Design

Moore College of Art & Design educates students for careers in the visual arts. Moore is an independent college of art and design. Located in the heart of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Moore is the first and only women's visual arts college in the nation, and one of only two in the world...

, in Philadelphia.