Illustrator Joseph Low dies at 95

EDGARTOWN, Ind., Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Joseph Low, 95, whose cover illustration on the children's book "Mice Twice" won a Caldecott award, died in his Edgartown, Mass., home of natural causes.

Low illustrated covers for The New Yorker beginning in the 1940s. His linear style, consistent with European surrealism, challenged the then-current trend toward realism in illustrations as evidenced by Norman Rockwell, The New York Times said.

Low freelanced for publishers and advertising agencies and produced book jackets and record covers. In 1960, he became proprietor of his own press, Hill Press in Newtown, Conn., which published limited editions of short stories and poetry illustrated with his own wood and linoleum cuts.

Low's playful graphic style lent itself to children's picture books, which from the late '50s to near the end of his life made up a large portion of his artistic output.

Low, who died Feb. 12, was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth Hull, who died in 2006. He is survived by two daughters and a granddaughter.