"The Art of Rabbit Ears: Contemporary Children's Illustrations" opens Tuesday, Feb. 13 at the Rebecca Randall Bryan Art Gallery at Coastal Carolina University. It will remain up through March 22; the public opening is on Thursday, Feb. 22 from 5 to 7 p.m. The show is free and open to the public.

The exhibit celebrates the art and artists of Rabbit Ears, an innovative company that produces children's books, tapes, CDs and DVDs. More than 20 original illustrations culled from 19 classic Rabbit Ears tales will be on display. The illustrations are a sampling of some of the top illustrators at work today and are as wide ranging in their media as they are in style.

Artists included in the exhibition are Jeff Smith, David Johnson, Peter DeSever, Greg Couch, Jack Malloy, Henrik Drescher, Steven Guarnaccia, Tim Raglin, Vivian Flescher, Karen Barbour, Stephano Vitale and Peter Sis.

"Exceptional design and quality illustrations by the best children's illustrators has always been an earmark of a Rabbit Ears book or video," said Cynthia Farnell, gallery director.

In 1985 Mark Sottnick and Doris Wilhousky began Rabbit Ears, an entertainment company for children, with their first production, "The Velveteen Rabbit," at the Palace Production Center in South Norwalk, Conn.

Rabbit Ears stories and the artists, actors and musicians who brought them to life have won numerous awards including two Grammy Awards and 18 nominations, 21 Parents' Choice Awards, a Parents' Choice Award for the Entire Storybook Classics series, seven Action for Children's Television awards, a National Education Association Award and the Humanitas Prize. Actors and musicians who have collaborated in the productions have included Meryl Streep, George Winston, Jack Nicholson, Danny Glover, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Garrison Keillor, Robin Williams, Ry Cooder and B.B. King, to name a few.

For more information on the exhibit call (843) 234-3466. For directions to the gallery, visit www. coastal.edu/bryanartgallery.