I Am Smoke
By Henry Herz and Merce Lopez
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is an American author.
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is an artist from Barcelona, Spain.
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2021
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6-9
I lack a mouth, but I can speak. I lack hands, but I can push out unwanted guests. I’m gentler than a feather, but I can cause harm.
In art, a medium refers to the material used to create a work of art. What common mediums do you know of?
My students mentioned everything but smoke. It’s not obvious, is it? This book is written from the point of view of smoke, it does the talking and Merce Lopez along with Henry Herz made it speak. I loved her interview where she spoke about this project.
I am smoke.
I twirl in dark dance from every campfire.
What is smoke for us? How do you feel about it?
What words describe smoke? (I first listen to my students’ ideas and then suggest something to steer them into a different direction.)
I am borne aloft in the heat’s embrace, soaring and spreading my wings.
I am smoke.
We loved the visual metaphors and how the text and images collaborate and dance in the smoke. The artwork here adds to the story and even writes a different one. Smoke spreads its wings just as birds spread theirs.
I am gentler than a feather.
Merce compares smoke to a dandelion clock as it is known for its fragility. Its feathery seeds are like parachutes floating in the wind. Smoke is just as gentle.
But I also help people.
How? (I first listen to the kids and then we move on to the next page.)
For centuries, smoke has been our friend and enemy. It can speak, tickle our noses. It is used in church, cooking food, farming and healing. Henry Herz and Merce Lopez wrote not just a deeply poetic book celebrating smoke, they included a lot of interesting historical and scientific facts about it.
