Chmielewska plays with phraseological collocations, showing how you can see and be seen in many ways. The cut-out eyes stare at us from the cream-colored pages and they change, for instance, into rabbits' ears or dogs’ noses. The author of a blog about books for children stated:
Eyes is not only a play with form. It is not only the methodology of ‘seeing’ that makes young kids realize the complexity of the concepts and our functioning in the world and its paradoxes. Perhaps primarily, the book in its subcutaneous tissue touches on the sense of happiness. And how we can perceive our existence and our ways of being in the world. Starting from the gifts with which we are endowed, to the simplest things that can bring us joy.
Eyes’ visual narrative was awarded, among others, with the prestigious children's book competition Bologna Ragazzi Award, as well as at the 55th PTWK Competition for Most Beautiful Books of the Year 2014. The publication was also put on the List of Treasures of the Museum of Children's Book in 2014.
Iwona Chmielewska is a prominent award-winning author of picture books. She's well known world-wide, including in China, Japan, Italy, Germany and Portugal. She has published over 20 books, and has a literary fan club in South Korea.
Oczy / Eyes, text and illustrations Iwona Chmielewska, Warstwy Publishing. The book was also published in Korea.
source: Newsweek, press materials, http://pozarozkladem.blogspot.com/, ed. AL/ transl. GS, July 2015