For as Long as People Have Existed

A woman who is actually a seal loses her sealskin and forgets her identity. Four children are transformed into swans. A huge water python turns out to be a young man. A snow maiden comes to life and evaporates to become a cloud. For as long as people have existed, they have told each other stories – about gods, humans, minor quarrels or powerful magicians. Such stories can serve as a warning or explain the origins of the human race, a species of animal, the earth, or certain customs. They can be found in oral traditions all over the world.

Sassafras De Bruyn has chosen thirty stories from all over the world, each of which has a metamorphosis at its heart. She narrates and depicts them in ‘For as Long as People Have Existed’. Her drawings, printed in tints of deep blue, create an extraordinary and surreal atmosphere that fits the book perfectly. Her lively narration is enriched by a timeless and robust visual idiom unique to De Bruyn. Not a page goes by without the addition of a tiny figure, a panorama or a full-page illustration. Thorough research and meticulous execution make this a very special book.