David Ezra Stein

David Ezra Stein was born in Brooklyn, NY. His love for drawing started when he would doodle on post-it notes that his mother left around the house. He enjoyed daydreaming and listening to the many stories that his parents and grand-parents would read to him. Evident from his fondness for drawing, Stein had a wild imagination that he loved to follow and escape into. He even began to make up stories of his own. Some of the authors and illustrators that influenced him as a child were Dr. Seuss, Richard Scarry, Ezra Jack Keats, Leo Leonni, Maurice Sendak (especially the Little Bear books), James Marshall, Jose Aruego, William Steig, Ludwig Bemelmans, and Bill Watterson.

Stein attended the Parsons School of Design in Manhattan for college. He majored in editorial illustration and took a course in Children's Book Writing, where he fell in love with and decided to pursue a career in children’s picture books. He drew pictures and worked on his passion of illustrating and writing books on the side while he had jobs ranging from a window display artist, puppeteer and puppet builder, to an interior and set design illustrator. His artwork appeared in the New York Times, the New Yorker, and the American Illustrator. 

His first book was published in 2006 by Simon and Schuster, titled Cowboy Ned and Andy. Since then he has published over 10 books! Stein's books have been reviewed by The Horn Book Guide and The Childhood Education Journal. He has also won the Caldecott Honor for Interrupting Chicken in 2011 and the Ezra Jack Keats award for Leaves in 2008. 

Stein says, "What would make me laugh if I was a kid? I always write from that perspective." He explains that music influences his work as well as the view from his home-office in Queens. Stein tends to listen to the same album over and over when working on a book. When created Pouch!, he listened to a Bollywood CD nonstop! He uses a variety of different mediums when illustrating including watercolors, china marker, ink and brush or bamboo pen – "it depends on the feel of the book."

David Ezra Stein currently lives in Kew Gardens in Queens, NY with his wife, Miriam, son, Sam and pet cat, Basta. He does school visits as well as updates his Facebook fan page, regularly. 

Related Exhibitions: Worlds of Wonder: David Ezra Stein (2019)