Daniel Salmieri’s Bear and Wolf
December 4th, 2018 by jules
(Click to enlarge and read text in its entirety)
Here’s a book I had wanted to write about earlier this year but didn’t get around to. Daniel Salmieri’s Bear and Wolf was released in February (Enchanted Lion), back when it was snowy. But now things have come full-circle, as they do, and it’s snowy again, so what better time than now to take a peek at the beautiful art? You will also see below in this post a video in which Daniel talks about the creation of the book — I am always a sucker for listening to artists talk about their craft — and I love what he says about how, to him, the story is about “being present and experiencing life fully. It’s about a shared understanding with your friend where not a lot needs to be said.” You can hear and see more in the video below, including Salmieri’s snow talk.
If you’re not familiar with this one, it’s Salmieri’s debut as author-illustrator. (He is best known for his illustrations for the perma-bestselling Dragons Love Tacos.) In the New York Times, Maria Russo described Bear and Wolf as a “stunning, serene and philosophical book.” She adds:
Nothing much happens: Sometimes, peaceful companionship and a mutual appreciation of beauty are more than enough.
And that pretty much nails it. So, I’ll stop talking — and we’ll look at the wonderful art (and video).
(Click to enlarge and read text in its entirety)
(Click to enlarge and read text in its entirety)
(Click to enlarge and read text in its entirety)
and birds sang in the tops of trees. …”
(Click to enlarge and read text in its entirety)
Please note: If, by chance, you cannot hear the audio of this video — there currently seems to be an issue with Chrome playing audio in embedded videos on some machines — you can view the video at this link.
BEAR AND WOLF. Copyright © 2018 by Daniel Salmieri. Illustrations reproduced by permission of the publisher, Enchanted Lion Books, Brooklyn.
