Widely recognized not only as a writer and illustrator of children's books but as a sculptor and educator as well, Chris Van Allsburg consistently takes advantage of "the opportunity to create a small world between two pieces of cardboard, where time exists yet stands still...." Spurred by his obsession with "making something real that at one point is only an idea," Van Allsburg uses his talent as an artist to explore the relationship between physical reality and the world of dreams and illusion.

Chris Van Allsburg was born 18 June 1949 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where his parents operated a dairy ("not the kind with cows," Van Allsburg clarifies, "but one that converts milk into ice cream"). He earned a bachelor of fine arts degree from the University of Michigan, where, abandoning his initial "vague idea of becoming a lawyer," he studied art to the exclusion and detriment of other...