maurice sendak dies at 83

maurice sendak in 1985 image courtesy AP/file

maurice sendak, author and illustrator of some of the most celebrated childhood tales of the 20th century such as ‘where the wild things are’, ‘chicken soup with rice’, or ‘in the night kitchen’ has died at the age of 83 in danbury, connecticut due to complications from a recent stroke.

sendak’s band of characters were often comprised of imperfect figures in both description and their sketched forms. these bittersweet figures allowed for a depth to the authors stories that children’s literature had not seen to this point, making his work all more more celebrated by the greater public. maurice sendak’s imaginative works have earned a place as some of the most powerful and pervasive tales of his time. the acclaimed author had won numerous awards for his work including the caldecott medal, the hans christian andersen medal, laura ingalls wilder medal, and national medal of the arts from US president bill clinton.

the cover of maurice sendak’s ‘where the wild things are’, 1963 image via

a still from his animated film ‘really rosie’ with music by carole king, 1975 image via

a storyboard sketch for the ‘alligators all around’ number from his animated film ‘really rosie’, 1975 image via

left: a sketch for ‘a very special house’, written by ruth krauss, 1953. image via right: one final watercolor, pencil and pen piece for ‘brundibar’, written by tony kushner, 2002. image via

‘tateshotes: maurice sendak’ by tate

‘sendak on death (and life)’ from ‘tell them anything you want: a portrait of maurice sendak‘ a documentary by spike jonze and lance bangs uploaded by N222011