Two international illustrators explore how to reinvent fantasy for today’s readers
On March 13, the cultural initiative of Salotto NYC hosts a special evening dedicated to imagination and children’s literature at 84 Withers Street in Brooklyn. Titled “The Grammar of Fantasy,” the event brings together two internationally recognized illustrators—Dasha Tolstikova and Roman Muradov—to discuss their visual interpretations of the work of Gianni Rodari, one of the most influential authors in modern children’s literature.
The evening focuses on recent illustrated editions of Rodari’s works published by the Brooklyn-based independent publisher Enchanted Lion Books, including The Adventures of Cipollino and Lamberto Lamberto Lamberto. Doors open at 6:30 pm, with the conversation beginning at 7 pm. Through drawings, reflections, and anecdotes from their creative processes, the two artists will explore how Rodari’s imaginative universe can be translated into contemporary visual language for today’s young readers.
Writer, poet, and educator Gianni Rodari (1920–1980) dedicated his career to celebrating childhood imagination. His stories are known for their playful use of language, surreal humor, and subtle social commentary. Rodari believed that creativity and fantasy were fundamental tools in education, an idea famously articulated in his influential book The Grammar of Fantasy, where he outlined methods for stimulating storytelling and imaginative thinking in children. His narratives often combine whimsical characters with underlying reflections on justice, authority, and freedom, making his work resonate across generations and cultures.
Among the artists engaging with this legacy is Dasha Tolstikova , an author and illustrator originally from Moscow who now lives in Brooklyn. Tolstikova has developed a distinctive voice in contemporary children’s literature, combining delicate line work with emotionally resonant storytelling. Her books include The Jacket, recognized as a New York Times Notable Children’s Book, and the graphic memoir A Year Without Mom, which reflects on childhood memory and family separation. Her recent illustrated edition of The Adventures of Cipollino by Rodari received the 2026 Batchelder Honor, an important recognition awarded in the United States to outstanding translated children’s books. In Tolstikova’s interpretation, Rodari’s famous story of rebellious vegetable characters takes on a new visual dimension while preserving the humor and political undertones that made the original tale a classic.
The second guest, Roman Muradov, is an Armenian illustrator and author currently based in London. Known for his refined, conceptual style and literary sensibility, Muradov works across editorial illustration, publishing, and graphic novels. His book All the Living, published by Fantagraphics, exemplifies his ability to blend narrative experimentation with sophisticated visual design. Over the years he has collaborated with numerous cultural and media institutions, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, Penguin Random House, MIT, Criterion Collection, Vogue, and Google. In addition to his artistic practice, he works as an art director at Notion.
Through the work of artists like Tolstikova and Muradov, Rodari’s imaginative legacy continues to evolve. Their illustrations do not merely accompany the text but reinterpret it, translating the playful logic and linguistic inventiveness of Rodari’s stories into contemporary visual narratives. The event organized by Salotto NYC thus becomes an opportunity to reflect on how children’s literature travels across languages, cultures, and generations, and how illustration can open new doors to the timeless world of fantasy that Rodari envisioned.