Old as Stone, Hard as Rock: Of Humans and War

(Hardback)

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From acclaimed Italian artist Alessandro Sanna, a sweeping history of war and humanity as told wordlessly through paintingstracing both human destruction and creation through the ages, as witnessed and recorded by stone

A stone falls to the Earth. It picks up speed, rolling down the steep side of a mountain, until it comes to rest in an
empty plain. But the plain wont remain empty for long: out of the shadows emerge two figures, who immediately start
to grapple, using that very stone as a weapon, to kill.

But those same hands, our human hands, holding the same weight of stone, also shape and forge, chisel and build,
creating as they destroy, rendering beauty and violence alike. What is the relationship of those twin impulses
In these pages, artist Alessandaro Sanna uses the shaping force of his hands to explore the seemingly endless,
perversely steadfast human capacity for destruction. Unflinchingly tracing humanitys long history of war, from the
havoc of armies on horseback, to the violence of the conquistadores, to the carnage of the First World War, to the
ghastly terror of the atomic bomb, and the cruel, shockingly intentional attack on the Twin Towers, Sanna records our
compulsion to destroy. The hands mold clay, streak color across a sky, define a world, give beauty to the eye; and yet
fires burn, an acrid smell arises, smoke blots out the sun. For what and why

Includes an introduction from esteemed poet & scholar, Ammiel Alcalay, as well as an artists note.

Reviews

STARRED REVIEW! "In this translated work, an Italian artist grapples with the intractability of war as part of the human condition... Readers witness an increasing scale and scope of conflict and violence through illustrations that at times feel universal and at others reference iconic, recognizable scenes from diverse times and places... Painterly, atmospheric backgrounds add perspective and a stark elegance, accentuating the bleak solemnity. The montaged compositions occasionally evoke Peter Sis art and Shaun Tans The Arrival. A haunting, poetic visual interpretation of one of humanitys existential dilemmas." * Kirkus Reviews *

Author Bio

Born in 1975, Alessandro Sanna is considered one of Italys leading contemporary illustrators. He has earned wide recognition across Europe as an illustrator and author, and his work has appeared in the New York Times Book Review and The New Yorker. He is a prolific and popular creator of illustrated books for children and readers of all ages, including The River, Pinocchio: The Origin Story, and Crescendo, and has received many awards and had many exhibitions. He lives and works in Mantua, Italy.