• Original Art: Original illustration from Cartoon Saloon’s Irish Folklore Trilogy series
• Era: 2008–2020
• Region: Ireland

Celtic mythology and breathtaking animation come to life in a first-of-its-kind stationery collection created in partnership with Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon. The studio’s powerful stories and mesmerizing visuals have captured the hearts of young and old alike. With their striking original artwork and captivating scenes, the connection we feel with these emotive tales is undeniable.

Cartoon Saloon’s celebrated Irish Folklore Trilogy is a series that particularly resonates with us. Exploring universal themes and emotions, the Academy Award–nominated fairy tales take viewers through visually lush and immersive worlds.

Favouring the traditional craft of hand-drawn animation, the films’ swirling, intricate patterns of ancient Irish art breathe life into the stories they tell. This approach sets the studio’s work apart in the animation world, which has gone almost entirely digital. It’s these shared philosophies that made this collaboration feel like a natural step for us. We are thrilled to have Tomm Moore, who has directed several of the studio’s most successful films, contribute unique illustrated elements exclusively for our collaborative covers.

Reproduced here is artwork from WolfWalkers (2020), the third and final installment in Moore’s Irish Folklore Trilogy, following his previous films The Secret of Kells (2009) and Song of the Sea (2014).

Inspired by shape-shifters in Irish mythology, specifically the manwolves of Ossory, WolfWalkers tells the story of a young apprentice hunter, Robyn, who arrives in Ireland with her father during a time of superstition and magic to wipe out the last wolf pack. As Robyn explores the forbidden and mystical forests that lie outside the city walls, she befriends a free-spirited wild girl who is rumoured to turn into a wolf. This friendship has Robyn at risk of turning into the very thing her father seeks to destroy.

The enchanted world of WolfWalkers aims to explore the balance between man and nature, wildness, and order. Moore was also inspired by the ancient Gaelic word for wolf, mac tíre, meaning “son of the land,” which beautifully illustrates the kinship that ancient Ireland had with the environment.

WolfWalkers is a compelling example of keeping the wisdom of Irish mythology alive, and in doing so it celebrates both the beauty and power of the natural world.