CRENSHAW : Teacher Draws on Teen Artist’s Talents

At 17, illustrator Brian McClendon is busily doing what many seasoned artists struggle long and hard to do: making his art a viable business venture.

Between homework assignments and during the spare moments he can muster, the Dorsey High School senior draws sketches for two children’s books written by teacher Brenda Lyle-Gray, with conceptual and technical assistance from business education teacher Etha Robinson and art teacher Dale Davis.

Lyle-Gray is the author of six children’s books that have yet to be published, but the upcoming “A Shell for Andre,” the first to enlist an illustrator, has garnered strong interest from publishers, she said. She and McClendon have agreed to be equal partners in the venture and split the profits.

The instructors say their collaboration with McClendon is not only a sound business decision, it’s a good way to harness young community talent that too often goes underdeveloped or unrecognized.

“I was specifically looking for a student to do this,” said Lyle-Gray of the book project. “Brian is very good, very professional. And if I can help a kid get started on his career, so much the better.”

McClendon is also working on a character and a series of sketches for “Li’l Miss Teacakes,” another children’s book by Lyle-Gray inspired by Robinson’s Southern-style sweets business, Mrs. Robinson’s Teacakes.

Robinson launched the business in 1988 and operated a kiosk in nearby Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza for a year. She said she always envisioned an animated character that could boost product visibility as well as plumb the rich history of the South.

Brian’s rendering of “Li’l Miss Teacakes,” a story that takes place during slave times, will finally give shape to that vision.

“My concern has been that black people had not taken our own products and parlayed them into financial successes ourselves,” Robinson said. “What we’re doing with Brian is that step beyond networking. We’re putting things on paper and doing this from the ground up.”

Lyle-Gray, who has been at Dorsey only a year, met McClendon through longtime art teacher Dale Davis. Davis recommended McClendon after Lyle-Gray sought a student who would be interested in illustrating her latest manuscripts.

Davis works closely with McClendon on the 26 sketches for “A Shell for Andre.”

“Brian’s self-motivated,” said Davis, a longtime activist in the Crenshaw arts community. “He’s serious about things. His big problem was not knowing which option to settle on when it came to developing ideas. I had never worked with a student on this level before, but he’s got a lot of talent. I expect big things from him.”

A tall teen-ager with a shy smile and a penchant for baseball caps, McClendon says he immediately took to the story “A Shell for Andre,” which follows the travails of a turtle born without a shell who is forced to protect himself after an earthquake devastates his beloved forest.

“This is really different,” said McClendon, who hopes to study animation at the University of Southern California. “Most children’s books talk to kids like they’re stupid, with phrases like ‘See Spot run.’ They’ll enjoy this more.”

Though a lifelong artist, McClendon admits his experience with graphics and illustration was limited to lettering signs for his mother’s garage sales.

McClendon added that although he’s mainly in the project for fun and additional experience, the prospect of making money is heady indeed. “That makes me happy, very happy,” he said, laughing.

For Lyle-Gray, the partnership is very serious, and not just because she is fulfilling a 20-year dream of getting her children’s literature published. “If Brian gets exposure and gets his work out, I’ve succeeded,” she said. “It takes a whole village to raise a child. . . . If I can help with Brian’s career, I’ve done my share.”