The fake beast: A post-anthropocentric representation of wildlife in picture book illustration
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Authors
Chikurova, Daria
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Degree
Master of Creative Practice
Grantor
Unitec, Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology
Date
2025
Supervisors
Woodruffe, Paul
Wood, Becca
Wood, Becca
Type
Masters Thesis
Exegesis
Exegesis
Ngā Upoko Tukutuku (Māori subject headings)
Keyword
picture books for children
animals in art
wildlife in art
anthropomorphism
story telling
visual communication
animals in art
wildlife in art
anthropomorphism
story telling
visual communication
ANZSRC Field of Research Code (2020)
Citation
Chikurova, D. (2025). The fake beast: A post-anthropocentric representation of wildlife in picture book illustration (Unpublished document submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Creative Practice). Unitec, Te Pūkenga - New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology
https://hdl.handle.net/10652/6807
Abstract
This creative project explores illustration practices in children's storytelling, focusing on the visual representation of wildlife through a post-anthropocentric lens. My aim is to foster empathy and connections with nature by portraying animals authentically, free from anthropomorphic attributes in storybook form. I believe the way the animal kingdom has historically been introduced to young readers in many children's stories has reinforced a hierachical human perspective toward wildlife. Through the creation of a wordless illustrated storybook, I aim to present the natural world in a way inspired by post-anthropocentric theorists and their notions of co-existence and reciprocity in the human-nature relationship.
Told entirely through illustrations, there is no text included in the picture book. The images are the sole form of communication. The absence of text was a critical decision to convey the narrative through tone, rhythm and feeling. This approach gives readers the space to interpret and reconstruct the story in their own way, engaging with the images to fill in the gaps and reimagine their own narrative.
The story I am illustrating was written by Vladimir Arseniev, a renowned Russian geographer and naturalist whose passion was to study and explore the diversity of life and the land around them. It recounts an expedition in the forest of my home region, Primirskiy kray, where, at the time the story was written, indigenous world views and the influence of the Industrial Revolution were colliding.
The methodology is a practice-led exploration of visual storytelling strategies, aiming to address the following questions:
how might illustration portray the world of wildlife in the context of a post-anthropocentric view point, how do I develop an engaging illustrative language for a young audience in this context, and how might a story be told through images only. The creative practice-led research journey explores illustration strategies and techniques through experimentation with content and media.
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