Background
Murdocca grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and attended the High School of Art and Design in New York City, majoring in illustration.
Murdocca grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and attended the High School of Art and Design in New York City, majoring in illustration.
Art Students League of New New York
He is best known as Sal Murdocca, illustrator of the Magic Tree House series written by Mary Pope Osborne (from 1992) and the nonfiction Magic Tree House Fact Checkers by Osborne and collaborators (from 2000)—about 50 and 30 volumes respectively to 2014. After graduating in 1960 he spent another year studying at the Art Students League while apprenticing in a commercial art studio. After a successful nine-year career as an advertising and magazine illustrator Mr.
Murdocca gradually turned to children"s book illustration.
Since 1970 Mr. Murdocca has authored ten books and illustrated hundreds of education, mass market, and trade books He has illustrated books by such noted authors as Elizabeth Winthrop ("Dancing Granny", Marshal Cavendish, 2003), Eve Bunting, Bill Martin Junior., Olivia Newton-John, Charles Grodin, Alan Benjamin, Laura Numeroff, Edward Packard, Jeanne Bendick and Mary Pope Osborne.
He has also illustrated several series, including George East. Stanley"s Third Grade Detectives, Scaredy Cats, and Mary Pope Osborne"s Magic Tree House series. In the early 1980s Mr.
Murdocca taught writing and illustration for two years at the Parsons School of Design.
His writing has been recognized by the Literary Guild. Mr. Murdocca is also an award winning fine artist who has participated in many one-man and group shows of his watercolor and acrylic paintings. His fine art has been represented by galleries in Nyack, New York, SOHO, New York City and in France.
He has written the libretto for an opera inspired by his own book, "The Hero of Hamblett", published in 1972.
