Texas Woman’s University is proud to have more than dozen original illustrations created for children’s books produced by some of the most important names in the field of children’s literature of the twentieth century.

This is the lifetime collection of Dr. Clarabel Tanner (1918-2013), a distinguished TWU alumna who had a long and vital career as a school librarian. Upon her retirement, she returned to graduate school and received her doctorate from TWU in 1987. Throughout her life she collected original art created by illustrators of children’s books purchased one by one or received as gifts from the illustrators themselves. This distinguished collection includes 11 original works by winners of the prestigious Caldecott award for the single most distinguished contribution to children's book illustration in a given year, as well as eight pieces by Caldecott award runner up illustrators, and an original 19th century woodcut by the master himself, Randolph Caldecott.

Clarabel Tanner’s collection of children’s book art is on display in children's collection, located on the Garden Level of the Blagg-Huey Library.