Rey Rosario (center) with judge Judith Holman and 1991 Illustrator Grand Prize winner and judge, Sergey Poyarkov.

         Rey Rosario was born in 1981.  He started drawing at the age of four when his grandmother bought him a sketchpad.  He more fully discovered the world of art reading comic books at his grandfather’s antique store at age ten.

         Rey and his family came to the United States from Puerto Rico when he was in the eighth grade.  He went on to graduate from high school in 1999 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  He is currently attending Kendall College of Art in that same city and working part-time in a dry cleaners.

         Rey entered the Illustrators’ Contest and won with his first entry.  He feels he “learned to plan” while illustrating this story.  He looks up to Creg Copullo and would like to achieve a career in professional illustration.