Art Review:

When illustrator Dave DeVries discovered that his niece Jessica had filled his sketchbook with doodles one fateful day at the Jersey Shore, he was less than thrilled.

“When kids draw, they carve into the paper, and it leaves an impression for the next 20 pages,” he said. “So I thought, oh no, there goes my sketchbook.”

Upon further inspection and a hint of inspiration, however, DeVries discovered that with a little color and texture, Jessica’s drawings could mean something more. The result was “The Monster Engine,” a vibrant, expressive exhibition that showcases an intimate glimpse into how far a child’s imagination can run, especially when it concerns one of their biggest fears — monsters.

The collection, which is on display at Wax Poetic Salon, has been eight years in the making, and breathes life into and elevates the whimsical scribbles of school-age children that otherwise would have been shoved into far corners of desks or scrubbed off pristine white walls. Its appeal has even crossed over to Japan, where DeVries has appeared on Nippon TV to discuss “The Monster Engine.”

Although DeVries, whose illustrations appear in the Revenge of the Mummy Ride at Universal Studios theme park, collaborated mostly with children in his extended family, he gradually met children at shows, comic shops and through friends that provided the groundwork for his one-of-a-kind collaboration that has elevated the simple drawings of children into the ranks of the art world.

The exhibition comes complete with the children’s drawings juxtaposed to the actual paintings, which employ ink, acrylic and the tempera paint used in many kindergarten classrooms as mediums. This intuitive and colorful look into a child’s psyche is beyond what many adults would dare to dream of. It also has a 48-page companion book that contains drawings, paintings, photos and interviews with the child artists age 3 to 12.