"When I first submitted The Birdman manuscript to the publisher, I presented it with my own finished-illustrations. The publisher liked the story, but had a different vision of what the book should look like. Here are some of my illustrations of the Birdman's story."

"Later on, I provided the illustrators, Annouchka and Stephan, with the photographs I took on my journey to India, so that they could draw on them for inspiration in their art. I also lent them a little dress that Noor Nobi, the tailor, made, and that he gave me as a present. I hung the dress near Annouska's drawing table in her studio and it stayed there the entire time as she was working on her paintings. The tailor's presence was there."

"Even though I never showed my own pictures to the artists (as I didn't want them to be influenced by what I did) often their pictures portray the same scene I drew, sometimes seen from the same angle." - V.M.C.