Oscar De Mejo's ABC

by Oscar De Mejo

An alphabet book celebrates different aspects of life in the United States and the history of the country, bringing a fresh perspective to American myth and legend.

32 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Oscar De Mejo had degrees in both Law and Political Science. A believer in the occult and in particularly the I Ching, he even chose his art dealer, Ken Nahan, according to the I Ching's advice. De Mejo's one constant obsession since boyhood had been painting. After World War II, he married the movie star Alida Valli, and they came to the United States. After a stint as a jazz composer, De Mejo finally returned to his first love - painting.

Oscar de Mejo’s paintings are a mesmerizing mixture of the naïve and the sophisticated, the literal and the outlandish. His witty, whimsical depictions of American life are immediately engaging, but upon closer observation their complexity becomes fully apparent, and his unique brand of surrealism is revealed. The myriad irrational and incongruous details that fill his works prod both the conscious and unconscious mind.

His works have been featured in such publications as: American Heritage, Architectural Digest, Art Today, Sciences, Harpers, International Economy, Town and Country, MD Magazine, Vogue Magazine, Die Kunst (Germany), Oggi and Graza (Italy), Yale Literary Magazine, Penthouse, Travel & Leisure and the New York Times.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous illustrations in this out-of-the-ordinary ABC book.

[Jordan Bramblett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent book for children to learn their alphabet! The words and images come from famous people and historical events or places from our past. Some of the most important historical events that have taken place were used in this book. It's important for children to learn about our history and why things are the way they are now. This would definitely be the book that I would use if I had a class of Kindergarten kids to teach them their alphabet for the first time. It would also be a fun opportunity to teach them a little bit about our past history. Hopefully it sparks and interest and the children ask questions about what the pictures mean. This book was illustrated very well with a lot of detail. It really brings out the main image you think of when some of the historical events or things are stated in the book.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book amazing for it contains Americana artwork done by various artists. I also enjoyed how it was an ABC book that involves the history of the United States of America. I would read this book to my class to support my lessons about U.S. history.