Maurice Sendak
Maurice Sendak was born in 1928 in Brooklyn, NY. His childhood experiences there provided much of the material for his stories and drawings. These recollections allow him to remain in touch with children's experiences, their emotions and their worlds. He has been inspired by sources such as Henry James' books, Mozart's music, many different TV programs, opera, Mickey Mouse cartoons, and 1930s movies from his childhood.
Sendak is widely known as the creator of the children's classic, Where the Wild Things Are, for which he received the prestigious Caldecott medal in 1964. Where The Wild Things Are is the first book of a trilogy that also includes In The Night Kitchen (1970) and Outside Over There (1981). In these three books Sendak deals with the complex emotional life of children as embodied in their fantasies.
Sendak has earned recognition throughout his career not only as a writer and illustrator of children's books, but also as a designer for ballet and opera, co-founder of the Night Kitchen Theater, and the developer of plays, musicals, and films based on his books. Most recently, he won a National Medal of Arts. Sendak lives in Ridgefield, CT
