Maurice Sendak

Where the Wild Things Are, published in 1963 and both written and illustrated by Sendak, is his most iconic work. It won the 1964 Caldecott Medal for most distinguished American picture book and has sold millions of copies worldwide in dozens of languages.

Sendak created In the Night Kitchen (1970) and Outside Over There (1981), which together with Where the Wild Things Are form a loose trilogy exploring childhood fears, anger, and imagination. He also illustrated the beloved Little Bear series written by Else Holmelund Minarik, which later became the basis for a Nickelodeon animated series.

Sendak worked primarily in pen and ink, often combined with watercolor and intricate cross-hatching to create richly textured illustrations. He studied the work of William Blake, Hogarth, and the Old Masters at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and these influences are visible in the dense, layered quality of his compositions.

In the Night Kitchen became one of the most frequently challenged and banned children's books in the United States during the 1970s and 1980s. The controversy centered on the depiction of the child protagonist Mickey in the nude and on the book's dark, dreamlike psychological themes, which some parents and librarians considered inappropriate for young readers.