MAURICE SENDAK 1928-2012 -
Tuesday, May 08, 2012
MAURICE SENDAK 1928-2012
With the passi
ng of Maurice Sendak today, our field loses a true giant. Maurice Sendak changed the face of children’s picture books, not only by creating meticulous and emotional art, but by exploring themes that reveal the dark emotions of childhood. His ability to portray anger, opposition to authority, fear, and abandonment, as well as hope and love, transformed and elevated the picture book to the art form it is today.
In a long and varied career that began under the wing of the illustrious editor, Ursula Nordstrom, he is best known for his Caldecott winning book, Where The Wild Things Are, but is also the creator of numerous other award winning and ground breaking titles (all from Harper & Row) including In The Night Kitchen, Outside Over There, The Sign on Rosie’s Door , Higglety Pigglety Pop!, and his most recent, Bumble-Ardy.
Drawing on childhood experiences that were far from pleasant, he exorcised his demons through stories that were brutally honest, and often mixed with playfulness and humor. Although Mr. Sendak used his picture book art to express his deepest feelings and ask important questions, he always refused to be made into an icon for children’s books. “I’m not Hans Christian Andersen,” he said. “I don’t want a statue of me in the park with children crawling all over it.” Yet as a mentor to a generation of illustrators, he was generous with his time and talents, as artists such as Arthur Yorinks, Paul Zelinsky and Richard Eglieliski can attest.
The New York Times obituary of Mr. Sendak concluded with a letter he once received from an 8 year old boy that read:
“Dear Mr. Sendak, How much does it cost to get to where the wild things are? If it is not expensive, my sister and I would like to spend the summer there.”
We at the SCBWI remember him as a fearless artist. We honor him as a man devoted to truth and beauty. We respect him for never talking down to children. We applaud him for standing firm in the face of censorship. But mostly, we celebrate the beautiful, personal, profound body of work he leaves behind for generations to enjoy.