Paulo Rui
If there is an Italian version of the Energizer Bunny, it is Paolo Rui. He is in constant motion and cannot get the words out fast enough when in a conversation. It is an exhilarating experience to spend time with this talented illustrator, and I had that good fortune in September of 2008. Paolo and I rode the streetcar to his studio, both because he is really practicing the green life and does not own a car and also because he wanted me to see the beauty of his home town, Milan. It was a delightful ride. I learned that the first public gardens in the world were those in Milan. Paolo is also very concerned about the environment and what kind of future his eight-year-old son will have if we keep driving cars and burning fossil fuels.
As for his personal life, Paolo was invited to Taiwan in 1993 where he met a young woman, Vicky, on a blind date who he eventually married and brought back to his home town. They have one son. Vicky taught English in Taiwan and is also quite fluent in Italian. Paolo also speaks English quite fluently due to his studies in the US on a one year scholarship. He was a student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Milan and he remarked that being an illustrator is not a particularly well respected profession in Italy. It was in the US where he really learned to paint and also learned a lot about art history.
When he was a kid, Paolo wanted to create animation, but that has yet to happen. He spends most of his time at his studio—a large space that he shares with several other artists working in conventional media. At the time I visited, his wife and son had been away for nearly two month and Paolo thought he would get a lot of work done—he had contracts for two books—but as we all know, when you think you have a lot of time, it just sort of slips away and then suddenly you are facing a deadline. He was working very hard on his illustrations which are all full color and detailed. In order to work fast Paolo uses acrylics rather than oils.
His studio has a kitchen which is where we sat sipping herbal tea and eating a delicious focaccia. Lest you think that this could lead to a few extra pounds, Paolo is very much into fitness and exercise. He usually doesn't eat lunch but goes to exercise and he enjoys swimming and riding his bicycle. Paolo also shuns coffee, liquor and cigarettes—he doesn't want to become a slave to them.
His first book was an Italian story for Green Press which has been in print for more than 10 years, and he has several books that were recently republished by Mason Crest. He has undertaken considerable research for the books about daVinci and Van Gogh. Sometimes he feels that he wastes time doing so much research, but he feels strongly that it is important to get oneself back into the time period. To Paolo, Van Gogh was the ultimate artist. He didn't have to report to anyone. He was shocked when his art was sold because he then became a part of the "market." For Paolo being a freelance artist provides that illusion of freedom. He remarked that daVinci was very different and interestingly only 40% of his notes have been recovered and he wrote most of them in code. Like daVinci, Paolo has hidden things in his book—his variation on the idea of coding information. In both books about these famous artists, Paolo had to reproduce or transform paintings—for example, he followed Van Gogh's style in the story.
He reflected on his experience with his first book. It was all new to him and he didn't know how to do a book. Today he knows and he starts with thumbnails and then finer sketches—line drawings which he blows up on a copier. He gives his clients the idea of what the final art will look like. He redraws the images on tracing paper and eventually transfers these images to canvas which is then stapled to a board. Next he applies gesso and a primer color such as ochre. He then draws the background and moves forward with the characters being executed last. It is a technique that he learned from studying Canaletto. He does not do just one thing. Paolo loves trying new techniques and he also does graphic design as well as books.
In addition to his painting, Paolo has started writing stories on his own. Like many new writers, his text was a bit long and he said with a smile that his publisher has told him to cut the text down. While Paolo would love to focus on just his own work, the realities of life mean that he must be able to make money so he takes advertising jobs. He remarked that in advertising everything needs to be done yesterday, so it is a good thing that he seems to have boundless energy.
Along with his books, and commercial work, Paolo also teaches at the European Institute of Design which has four branches in Italy. He holds classes once or twice a week. He tries to teach his students that there is more to life than illustration. I had an opportunity to view some of his works in progress and also to look at a number of his illustrations that have appeared in publications such as the Illustratori Italiani Annual for 2006, 2007 and 2008. In the 2006 issue Paulo had examples of an advertising piece for Birra Moretti/"Heineken" (the animals are amusing—bats, pigs, snakes). His car for Carworld has its own personality. This annual also included two illustrations from Galileo's Journal 1609-1610-the painting entitled "Towards Venice" and the cover of the book as well as "Extraordinary" which shows Galileo looking through his microscope. He also has some really interesting postcards that feature the advertising work—much of it is filled with humor. He also enjoys the fantasy world and has a movie poster of H. G. Wells War of the Worlds on his wall in the studio kitchen and his business card also has unusual aircraft on each side.
What can we expect soon? A new book for 2009 Galileo's Leaning Tower Experiment by Wendy Macdonald with Paolo Rui as the illustrator which is also scheduled to be published by Charlesbridge.
Contributor: Marilyn Courtot
Further information about Paulo Rui and his books is available at this website.
Reviews
Van Gogh
Richard Bowen
Illustrations by Paolo Rui
Part of the "Great Names" series, this is a fictionalized first-person account by Van Gogh himself. Bowen uses excerpts from the artist's letters to his brother Theo as well as a running narrative to describe Van Gogh's childhood, his immersion in painting, and his bouts with madness. The technique works most effectively in the last sentence when Vincent returns to his beloved wheat fields and this time "took nothing with me but my gun." The approach isn't always successful, but in a world filled with Van Gogh books, it is a welcome innovation. Rui's illustrations are boldly evocative images inspired by Van Gogh, and the book's endpapers reproduce a selection of the real thing. It is handsomely printed and bound. 2003, Mason Crest, $19.95. Ages 6 to 10. Reviewer: Kathleen Karr (Children's Literature).
ISBN: 1-5908-4141-7
ISBN: 978-1-5908-4141-9
Galileo's Journal, 1609-1610
Jeanne K. Pettenati
Illustrated by Paolo Rui
Galileo Galilei was an intellectual pioneer of his times, whose observations of the night sky changed how people saw Earth's place in the solar system. The author carefully weaves fact with fiction to create an intriguing peek at the man's process and discoveries during a momentous year. Through this imagined journal, Galileo emerges as a resourceful, enthusiastic fellow, training his spyglass (telescope) on the heavens and recording and publishing his thoughts about Jupiter's four moons. Informative notes at the end provide biographical details beyond this year. Pettenati's accessible prose and her creation of a pet dog for Galileo will engage young readers from the first diary entry as will Italian artist Rui's paintings of a curious young man, eager pup and stars and planets. 2006, Charlesbridge, $16.95 and $6.95. Ages 6 to 10. Reviewer: Mary Quattlebaum (Children's Literature).
Galileo is known today for his studies of the stars and the solar system, but his use of scientific methods to conduct his studies and experiments was as revolutionary as his discoveries. Jeanne Pettenati has created a journal that Galileo might have written during one brief year when he used trial and error to create a telescope--or spyglass as he called it--and then asked questions about what he saw when he looked at Jupiter with his spyglass. He was always ready to try new experiments and observations to find the answers to his questions. What are the bright stars next to Jupiter? What if the stars and Jupiter are all moving? His conclusions made his real book The Starry Messenger a bestseller of his day, but it also infuriated the religious authorities, who prevented him from traveling or teaching anymore. The book makes an important but ancient man a little more human. The illustrations are adequate with the best rendering of Galileo on the cover, where the glint in his eye draws the reader in to share the quest. Pettenati's notes include a brief biography, as well as an explanation of precisely where she took liberties in creating Galileo's journal. 2006, Charlesbridge, $16.95. Ages 6 to 12. Reviewer: Karen Leggett (Children's Literature).
The diary format of this easy picture book is based on what the author believes Galileo may have written in his journal from July 1609 to March 1610, during the time he was living in Padua. The diary format is successful in that it allows the reader to experience events through Galileo's eyes. The reader is able to feel Galileo's excitement as he takes his spyglass up to the rooftop and begins to look at the stars and the moon. His discoveries proved that the sun, and not the moon, is the center of the universe. The simple color illustrations add to the humanness of the story. The back of the book contains two pages that will help the reader distinguish fact from fiction. There is information about the life of Galileo and about the actual discoveries that he made. There is also an author's note that explains which parts of the journal entries are fact and which are fiction. Both are useful additions to this very entertaining, interesting book about a man and his discovery that have truly changed our world. Although this book cannot be used for student research, it would be a great starting point for generating interest in astronomy. Recommended. 2006, Charlesbridge Publishing, 32pp., $16.95 hc. Ages 7 to 9. Reviewer: Karen Scott (Library Media Connection, February 2007).
What a fun way to start learning about Galileo and his discoveries! The author has invented a journal that Galileo might have kept during the nine months after he started developing his telescope, through his discovery of the moons of Jupiter, and his arriving at the conclusion that the Earth and other planets revolved around the sun. The story is told in a lively manner and is made more accessible to children by Galileo's relationship with his dog, Luna. There's no record of his having a dog, but Luna's breed was commonly kept as a pet by Italian families of the time. The facts of the discoveries are correct, though the journal, the dog, and many of the daily life details are made up, as the author explains in the Author's Note. The illustrations are wonderfully fun and imaginative, and the book includes a bibliography and a short piece, "The Life of Galileo," which offers a more factual look at his life and work. This book would be a great addition to any library, and parents can enjoy it along with their children. It could well plant the seeds of a lifelong interest in astronomy or optics. Fiction, Highly Recommended. Grades 2-3. 2006, Charlesbridge, 29p., $16.95. Ages 7 to 9. Reviewer: Ginny Hoskins (The Lorgnette-Heart of Texas Reviews (Vol. 19, No. 3)).
ISBN: 1-5709-1879-1
ISBN: 978-1-5709-1879-7
ISBN: 1-5709-1880-5
ISBN: 978-1-5709-1880-3
Added 1/2/09
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