October 01, 2023

Painting for the National Geographic.

About two months ago Deleo received an assignment from National Geographic magazine.
He was asked to create an illustration to accompany an article about the dodo, in which paleontologist Leon Claessens states that the dodo was not so much a stupid and clumsy animal, but rather a very unlucky one. The title of the article: “The tragic fate of the Dodo”

Deleo really enjoyed the study and research to determine how the bird, that went extinct more than 300 years ago, must have looked like. Few contemporary paintings and drawings of the animal survived. Most of the artists, just like Deleo, had never seen a living species. His version also blends fact and fiction. However, he closely examined a skull kept by the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, a painting (1625) by the Mughal artist Ustad Mansur and the drawings made by Joris Joostensz Laerle during the voyage of the VOC Gelderland in 1602, among many other resources.

In the painting that Deleo made, the (flightless) bird frozen in mid air, refers to it’s seemingly inevitable extinction. The egg, held up very carefully by the bird, symbolizes the struggle for survival (and the revival attempts by humans). Remains of the egg are considered to be the holy grail in Dodo research, and have, until now, never been found.

Deleo tried to depict the dodo in a somewhat unexpected way, but at the same time make references to well-known images and assumptions about the animal. The posture deliberately resembles that of a found fossil of an archaeopteryx. Both, the dodo and the archaeopteryx, are famous but unfortunately extinct. In the posture one could also recognize a reference to seventeenth century still life paintings with hunting trophies. This because the extinction of the dodo, unlike the disappearance of the archeopteryx, is entirely due to humans (directly or indirectly).

The final artwork made with acrylic paint is published in the October edition of the Dutch version of the magazine. A video showing the process of creating the artwork can be seen here.

September 01, 2023

The English edition of the book ‘Terra Ultima’ is now available!

From today the book about Terra Ultima is available in the English language. It is published by Big Picture Press, part of Bonnier Books UK. The translation is by Michelle Hutchison, winner of the 2020 International Booker Prize for her translation of The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld. The cover of the book is slightly different from the Dutch version, with a bit more gold and adjusted typography.

Now, the nature and wildlife of Terra Ultima might touch and amaze even more people. Hopefully it will help to reflect, protect and cherish nature on all continents. For nature is and remains truly miraculous and we are a deeply intertwined part of it, wether we are aware of it or not.

October 01, 2022

Terra Ultima book awarded ‘Het Gouden Penseel’.

This Friday, September 29, during “het Kinderboekenbal” (the Children’s Book Gala), the book “Terra Ultima” has been awarded “Het Gouden Penseel” (the Golden Paintbrush) for the best illustrated children’s book of 2021. The award is one of the major literary prizes for Dutch Children’s and Young Adult literature.

Each year the jury of the CPNB (their main mission: to enrich people’s lives by having them read more books) selects and awards the best books published in the previous year. The winner of the Golden Paintbrush was selected from all the Silver Paintbrush winners awarded earlier this year.

Deleo: “I am really honored and flabbergasted at the same time. The book about the discovery of an unknown continent has been so lucky to get so much praise and publicity. As the discoverer, explorer and illustrator, this is all (and more) I hoped and wished for. A major thank you to everyone that helped me publish this book, especially the compiler, Noah J. Stern, and my publisher, Lannoo.”

April 02, 2022

Terra Ultima book wins Woutertje Pieterse Prize.

This Saturday the jury of the Woutertje Pieterse Prize has chosen ‘Terra Ultima’ to be the best Dutch children’s book of the year. Raoul Deleo and Noah J. Stern received the prize during a special ceremony broadcasted by the radio program ‘De Taalstaat’ and presented by Frits Spits.

The Wouterje Pieterse Prize is the award for children’s books that are exceptional in terms of language, genre, theme, illustration, form and/or design. The aim of the prize is to promote the quality of books for children and young adults that are published in the Dutch language.

The jury, led by writer Abdelkader Benali, wrote this about Terra Ultima:

“Terra Ultima celebrates the imagination and the adventure between illusion and reality. It offers an unforgettable reading experience to old travelers and makes young hearts beat faster. A romantic exploration that shows that science and imagination can go beautifully hand-in-hand. Terra Ultima is a fabulous book to dream away with, a book to take seriously. A book that binds generations together.”

Fragments of the award ceremony can be seen and listen to here and here.

Raoul Deleo during the ceremony in ‘De Taalstaat’ together with Noah J. Stern, Frits Spits and Abdel Kader Benali.
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