Since 2024, De Volkskrant, Landschappen NL, and Vroege Vogels have established ‘De Natuurboekenprijs’, a new award for the best Dutch-language nature book. The past two years (2025 and 2026) Deleo was commissioned to create an original artwork to be awarded to the winner along with a cash prize.

This year’s longlist was announced on the Vroege Vogels radio show on July 12, 2026, which was later narrowed down to five nominees.
On September 27, during the Vroege Vogels broadcast, Tine Hens with “Archief van mogelijk verlies” was announced as the winner. Along with a cash prize, Tine was awarded the framed drawing.

Deleo painted a midwife toad that blends into the winding body of an eel. He used the eel’s body as a kind of timeline. If you follow the winding movement backward in time from the toad, you’ll notice the color gradually fading out of the drawing. That symbolizes our memory and refers to the Shifting Baseline Syndrome—something Tine often talks and writes about.
It basically means that each new generation forgets just how rich nature used to be before their time, so our definition of ‘normal’ keeps degrading. That’s also why there are three starlings in the piece. Where you used to see massive flocks of thousands of birds, his drawing only shows three. And only one of those is barely halfway colored in.

A short filmed impression showing the creative process behind this artwork can be seen here.

After skipping a year, Deleo will open his studio doors again during the Groot Rotterdams Atelier Weekend (GRAW) and you are invited!

The new Terra Ultima find that was on display in the Microkosmos exhibition at the Drents Museum is back in Rotterdam. During GRAW, You can see the whole project at his studio, after which the painting will travel on to PAN Amsterdam.

However, there is more new work to see, including drawings made of animal and plant species that might emerge in the distant future under the influence of climate change.

New limited prints and original pieces will be available alongside my better-known works. Of course copies of the book Terra Ultima are still in stock in multiple languages and if you wish they can be signed for you.

To tempt you to visit (and as a thank you for coming), Deleo is offering a 15% studio discount that weekend on all purchases over €50.
You can still find the studio in a small but lovely patch of nature inside an old school building along the river Maas.

In the same building several other artists and writers are also opening their studios.

The address is Nesserdijk 406.
Please feel welcome, both days 19 & 20 September 2026
between 12:00h and 18:00h.

Read the invitation in Dutch.

Since 2024, De Volkskrant, Landschappen NL, and Vroege Vogels have established ‘De Natuurboekenprijs’, a new award for the best Dutch-language nature book.

This year (2025), all nature books published between June 1, 2024, and June 1, 2025, are eligible: from field guides to children’s books, and from poetry collections to novels. On the ‘Vroege Vogels’ radio broadcast of July 7, 2025, the longlist was announced, from which five titles were nominated.

On September 28, during the Vroege Vogels radio broadcast, the winner was announced: Eva Meijer, with her book ‘Muizenleven’ (Mouse Life). Eva Meijer’s prize included a sum of money and a framed original artwork made by Deleo. The jury consisted of Jean-Pierre Geelen (De Volkskrant), Jocelyn de Kwant (Landschap Noord-Holland), and Merlijn Schneiders (Vroege Vogels).

A short filmed impression showing the creative process behind this artwork can be seen here.

One year ago, artist and explorer Raoul Deleo returned to the mysterious continent of Terra Ultima. The expedition commenced unexpectedly with the unearthing of a curious object, long entombed beneath the desert sands of northeastern Terra Ultima—a discovery that, at first glance, seemed to be a relic from a long-lost human civilization. Careful excavation and detailed examination helped Deleo to uncover perhaps something even more extraordinary. This scientific and artistic expedition, documented in a film, traces Deleo’s meticulous process of research and reconstruction. The journey culminated in a new artwork—a meticulously rendered painting that casts another light on the natural history of Terra Ultima, inviting viewers to step once more into a world that lies just beyond the edge of the known.

The film and a new painting are on show at the Microcosm exhibition in the Drents Museum from September 6 until March 1, 2026.