Chris Van Allsburg

Van Allsburg was born on June 18, 1949 to a Dutch family in East Grand Rapids, Michigan, the second child of Doris Christianen and Richard Van Allsburg. He has a sister, born in 1947. His family lived in an old farmhouse, but when he was three years old, they moved to a Grand Rapids home near an elementary school that Chris was able to walk to for class. His family moved again to East Grand Rapids where he attended middle school and high school. Van Allsburg attended the College of Architecture and Design at the University of Michigan, which at that time included an art school. He majored in sculpture, learning bronze casting, wood carving, resin molding, and other techniques. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1972 and continued his education at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), graduating with a master's degree in sculpture in 1975. After graduation, Van Allsburg set up a sculpture studio.

Van Allsburg struggled for a time with his sculpture studio. At home he began a series of sketches that his wife thought would be suitable for children's books. She showed his work to an editor who contracted his first book The Garden of Abdul Gasazi, in 1979.

Van Allsburg has written and/or illustrated about twenty books. His art has also been featured on the covers of an edition of C. S. Lewis's series The Chronicles of Narnia, published by HarperCollins in 1994, as well as in three children's books written by Mark Helprin

100 Books — Wonderland Books

Chris Van Allsburg's Birthday Celebration | HappyBday.to - Page 3

Happy Birthday, Chris Van Allsburg - June 18

Happy Birthday, Chris Van Allsburg - June 18 This is a quick post to let you know that our family is still celebrating author birthdays d...

Happy Birthday Chris Van Allsburg!

Chris Van Allsburg is one of the most fascinating author/illustrators currently working. He was born 66 years ago in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Though he liked to make models and draw as a child, he went through high school without taking a single art course. He managed nevertheless to bluff his...

Literary Birthday – 18 June – Chris Van Allsburg | Writers Write

Chris Van Allsburg is an American author and illustrator of children’s books.

Chris Van Allsburg biography | birthday, trivia | American Illustrator | Who2