Man-Animal, Animal-Man
Text: Itamar Assumpção | Paintings: Dalton Paula
Among the many artistic languages he explored all his life, the composer, singer and instrumentalist Itamar Assumpção also wrote children’s books. But nobody knew.
Man-Animal, Animal-Man is the first book of thecollection “Itamar for Children”. It is a fun, irreverent poem about animals that combines numbers, rhythm and unusual poetic image.
It talks about the increasingly more urgent preservation of the environment, but in his own unique way.
The book was illustrated by Dalton Paula, the famous Brazilian visual artist who investigates the influence of the African diaspora in the culture and history of his country, and is a fan of Itamar.
The text was edited by the poet Alice Ruiz S, a longtime friend and collaborator of the author.
Specifications
Hard cover
40 pages
21 cm x 21cm
ISBN: 978-65-8666-604-5
The authors
Itamar Assumpção (by Anelis Assumpção)
Born on September 13, 1949, in Tietê, São Paulo, Itamar Assumpção passed away on June 12, 2003. He was a singer, composer, instrumentalist, actor, producer, and also a writer, although he simply considered himself a "non-poet." He produced a valuable body of work: over 300 songs, 9 albums, and hundreds of poems. His rich collection has been housed in a virtual museum dedicated to him, the MU.ITA, since 2020. Between 1998 and 2003, Itamar focused on a series of children’s books, which remained unpublished until 2021, when we published Homem-Bicho, bicho-Homem (Man-Animal, Animal-Man). Restless in his art and dedicated to the study of language, Ita chose to dive deep into children's language and put great effort into creating these works. He was also well known for his passion for nature, flowers, plants, and animals. Through these books, he offers a beautiful fusion of words and memory, flowing into a creative river filled with tongue twisters that unlock new ways of thinking.
Dalton Paula (by himself)
I was born in Brasília in 1982, and I currently live in Goiânia. I work as an educator and visual artist. I enjoy creating paintings, photographs, sculptures, and installations, and especially investigating the influences of the Black diaspora on Brazilian history. My works have been exhibited in museums such as MASP and the Tomie Ohtake Institute, as well as at art events like the São Paulo Biennial, the Triennial at the New Museum in New York, and the Mercosul Biennial. When I was invited to illustrate Itamar's unpublished books—works by an artist I admire—I felt the call of ancestry. I was very happy to have the opportunity to contribute to the work of this artist, who has done so much for our culture.
