Dr. Suess's Hat Collection & Birthday Celebration - Connecting point - Feb. 27, 2014

or doctor says is a familiar man in the Springfield Massachusetts area and his birthday is coming up on March back at for the first time ever his private hat collection is going on tour and you can see it Richard Michael Phan owner i've are michaelson galleries couldn't bring the haps with them to the studio but he brought the excitement behind this traveling exhibit we have arm a whole collection of doctors whose is actual hats he were a lot of very kinda funky cool weird hats the we have the actual cat in the hat hat where he always does not affect simile I'm but you can come to the gallery and see the habit that inspired him to write the Cat in the Hat and it's right there we actually got it delivery from the sousa state have this great big steamer trunk was about eight feet by 4 feet opened up and we have I think 28 different hats that Tom were sitting on doctor susan is headed one point or another he collected various hats and this is the first time that the hat have gone yeah on a traveling exhibit a as I mean it is just it's amazing to actually sit there and see them I'll and way you know he is to parties at his house where people were funny hats and I'm people over the years gave him hats once they know if his collection we're having this weekend to lead in a on Saturday this coming Saturday from six to eight we're having a little premature birthday celebration his birthday is Monday but we're inviting people to come to the gallery to view the hats and please wear your IRF small Souci in het we've got us a arm a surprise gift well not a surprise now I'll say for the person with the a funny *** though the best Sault Ste like hat it's a signed copy love the Sault Ste the whole Susan nothing but the soonest written by doctor Charles Cohen who is considered the arrests the arm the sous expert in this country and he absolutely actually lives in the Pioneer Valley area and he will be there to help us judge the hat contest there'll be cake you'll see are the actual hat as well as a lot of doctors whose is all worked his original artwork limited editions pieces outside of the book a lot of people don't realize that outside the book illustrations he did many many paintings for his own amusement and you can see a lot of the characters that later formed in his books and different hats it's just I mean it's really exciting that's great upbeat impact that doctors who says had forget all over the world in the country but or especially right here in the Pioneer Valley worries found one this is his home territory in what a lot of people don't realize is that this area is in many ways the center aisle the children's book illustration in the whole country even today many of the major book illustrators and writers live around here doctor seuss is influences very heavily felt we have had a an annual illustration show at the gallery now going on is this will be our twenty-fifth this year annual show and a lot have on I think last year the year before we had a lot of the local illustrators doing on March 2 the reason they got into this business and many of them painted doctor seuss images I know Mo Willems arm one of the best-known illustrate is in the area did too little drawings based on Seuss characters 22 easy as well it's just a.m. you know he's busy at the Santa anything hugh originally broke at the hat because his publisher told him that he needed there was a with about 250 words that children were struggling to learn in school and this is work at hacking from but it seems as if his impact hasn't even just benefit children even a dole you know it's amazing what one is it it transcends generations one other things we see in the gallery cuz we've represented the state in a row of work for many years now is that people my age and older con-man they remember some other books there the there and for all by the artwork but the young kid still arm you know the the not Hamptons resident at two NPR's people everybody relates to it the work is you know even outside the book has original artwork was ahead of its time you see some %uh the abstract influences you see some surrealistic in images and the colors a great and it's fun I think you could say that the fun is the perfect word sky when you read a doctor suspects you get how can I help but how can I not smile it's a and it's the same looking at the artwork and seeing the hatch you see what kind of a man he was speaking up at what is your favorite doctor seuss hap putting on the I'm pretty sure Famer on the well I mean there's something about seeing the original Cat in the Hat that your hat that can't be be I mean that's just iconic it's part of the culture today but you know he has some feathered hats in the gallery we have some Viking helmets we have on some Old Navy admiral had sir that he were when he was doing an advertising campaign for the Seuss Navy characters so its it's just the it's amazing to see approximately how many have to the heavens collection well we have 28 that was showing in the gallery I am he had many more but these are the ones that influenced a lot of his book work are a great thank you so much my cousin from are my cousin gallery thank you please come visit us this Saturday