Bruna, Dick

Dick Bruna, in full Hendrikus Magdalenus Bruna, (born August 23, 1927, Utrecht, Netherlands—died February 16, 2017, Utrecht), Dutch illustrator and writer who was best known as the creator of the beloved children’s character Nijntje (Miffy in English), a sparingly drawn white bunny that featured in 32 books. The Miffy books were translated into more than 50 languages.

Bruna’s father headed the publishing company A.W. Bruna & Zoon and expected that his son would also become a publisher. Dick Bruna was sent to work in bookshops in Utrecht and in London and at a publishing company in Paris in order to learn that business. He was more interested in art than in publishing, however, and in 1948 he enrolled in the State Academy of Fine Arts in Amsterdam. He joined the family publishing company in 1951 as a designer of book covers and posters.

His first children’s book, De Appel (1953; The Apple) showcased his illustration style and his use of a palette of a few bright colours. Miffy debuted in 1955 in a book simply entitled Nijntje. Miffy was drawn in simple black outlines with two dots for eyes and a sideways X for a mouth; subtle variations conveyed Miffy’s emotional state as she experienced the sorts of adventures that many toddlers would find familiar. Each of Bruna’s books consisted of 12 page spreads, with the illustrations on the right side and the text, a four-line rhymed couplet, on the left. Bruna created the illustrations that told the story first and only afterward filled in the text. He wrote 124 children’s books in all, many featuring different animal characters.

Other Miffy titles included Nijntje in de dierentuin (1955; Miffy at the Zoo), Nijntje aan zee (1963; Miffy at the Seaside), Nijntje in het ziekenhuis (1975; Miffy in the Hospital), Njintje in de tent (1995; Miffy in the Tent), and Lieve oma pluis (1996; Dear Grandma Bunny), which dealt with the death of Miffy’s grandmother. The last two were awarded the Dutch children’s literature Silver Brush for illustration and the Silver Slate for writing, respectively. In addition, a children’s television show was built around Miffy, and Nijntje de film (Miffy the Movie) appeared in 2013.

Bruna was honoured in 2015 with a showing of his illustrations and book cover designs at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and in 2016 he received the Max Velthuijs Award for his body of work as an illustrator. In 2006 the Centraal Museum in Utrecht opened the Dick Bruna Huis, a permanent collection of his work, and in 2015 it was converted into the Nijntjemuseum (Miffy Museum), a children’s museum.