Hush-A-Bye-Baby

Baby Pig - Animals Need Safety too

This 1997 version presents a pig as the baby. The background is dark and the boughs of the tree are broadly brushed with dark shades. Above the pig in basket is a blue flower in the design of a pinwheel, perhaps to give indication to the element of wind in the Hush-a-Bye Baby rhyme. This is the only illustration of those selected to use photography; the pig is photographed but the cradle and background are painted. By using a photograph, the illustrator is able to elicit several reactions from the reader, such as the absurdity of using a pig for the baby-perhaps a clear perspective from the English populace circa 1771. On the other hand, the use of the pig as the baby creates a cute and cuddly animal version of the rhyme. As a matter of fact, the pig appears very secure on the thick bough and in the cradle. In addition, there is no true indication of wind or any peril at all awaiting the baby. The illustration has the pig steadily on the branch and close to the bottom of the page. Even if the baby were to fall, the reader does not receive any indication that the animal would be hurt. Moreover, the issue of animal rights and the protection of the natural world were major considerations of people throughout the world in the 1990's when this illustration was created. This illustration perhaps reflects that respect for animal life by not placing the animal in a precarious situation that may lead to a violent end.