A man walks on the road between Nouahibou and Nouakchott, where three Spanish aid workers were abducted in Mauritania, December 3, 2009. (Photo by Rafael Marchante/Reuters)

Los Angeles native Mike Stilkey has always been attracted to painting and drawing not only on vintage paper, record covers and book pages, but on the books themselves. Using a mix of ink, colored pencil, paint and lacquer, Stilkey depicts a melancholic and at times a whimsical cast of characters inhabiting ambiguous spaces and narratives of fantasy and fairy tales. A lingering sense of loss and longing hints at emotional depth and draws the viewer into their introspective thrall with a mixture of capricious poetry, wit, and mystery. (Photo by Mike Stilkey)

Brush and trees are engulfed in flames after firefighters set a backburn along Highway 191 in an attempt to control a raging wildfire on June 10, 2011 in Nutrioso, Arizona. The fire, which is five percent contained, has so far consumed over 400,000 acres of land and destroyed 29 homes. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

Relatives mourn during the funeral of Baptist church minister Andre Tessono, who was killed during 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit the area 8 days ago, in the Picot neighborhood in Les Cayes, Haiti, Sunday, August 22, 2021. (Photo by Matias Delacroix/AP Photo)

South African singer and songwriter Tyla poses with the award for Best Afrobeats for “Water” during the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards in Elmont, New York, U.S., September 11, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Kelly/Reuters)

A Midshipmen from the Naval Academy eyes the Navy mascot behind her before the first half of the the 125th Army-Navy game at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, on December 14, 2024. (Photo by Danny Wild/USA TODAY Sports)

Argentine Juan Manuel Silva and Pablo Sisterna (not pictured) crash in their Mercedes car during the 7th stage of the Dakar Rally from Iquique to Uyuni, January 10, 2015. (Photo by Daniel Rodrigo/Reuters)

A sign reading “STOP Danger of Avalanches” blocks a local road on January 11, 2012 near Ischgl, Austria. Over the last few days heavy snowfalls have caused chaos in parts of Austria and Switzerland by blocking rail and road connections, stranding vacationers at mountain ski resorts and creating the risk of avalanches throughout the region. (Photo by Johannes Simon/Getty Images)