The illustration board in the fur seal area has been renewed!

In the fur seal area of ​​Kyoto Aquarium, there are illustration boards depicting the characteristics of individual seals. With the cooperation of three students from Kyoto City University of Arts, these illustration boards have been given a new lease of life.
This time, we will be bringing you the production process.

■Illustration board renewal has begun!
The Kyoto Aquarium's fur seal area and seal area are home to six South American fur seals and three spotted seals. These animals differ not only in appearance, but also in their preferred food and behavior. Illustrated boards are displayed to introduce the characteristics of each individual.

The illustration boards that visitors have seen until now were drawn by animal care staff in 2019. This time, we asked Miyuki Morikawa, Moe Nishikawa, and Yuya Hashimoto from Kyoto City University of Arts, which will be relocating to the eastern area of ​​Kyoto Station in October 2023, to create new illustration boards.

Fur seal illustration board (2019)

Seal illustration board (2019)
■See and touch. The production begins while experiencing animals up close. <br />To begin the production, we first began by learning about fur seals and seals.
In August, the participants got to see and touch the animals up close, imagining what kind of illustrations they would create. The three participants, who don't usually have many opportunities to draw animals, said it was quite difficult to grasp their characteristics.

Interacting with seals

After seeing, touching, and learning about the animals, the next step is to start making sketches. After speaking with the animal care staff in charge of the seals, you will decide on the scene and expression that will best capture the individual seals' individuality, and then consider the composition.

A sketch of a mother and daughter fur seal, Mary (mother) and Hanna (daughter)

The composition is decided!
■The actual production has begun! The animal care staff are raving about the finished product!
In mid-September, when the relentless heat of summer was still lingering, work on the illustrations began in the exhibition area.
They proceeded with their paintings while looking at photographs they had taken and observing the animals in person. For the students, who usually create Japanese paintings or oil paintings, the process of expressing the subtleties of animals while creating gradations with acrylic paints was unusually difficult.
During the opening hours, the visitors were able to see the works while they were making them, and many people, including children, spoke to them.

The process of drawing the fur seal board

After 40 hours of work, the illustration board was completed, allowing the individual personalities of the three animals to be felt. It was a long production process, with some days working late into the night after the museum closed.

If you observe the animals while looking at the illustration boards that capture the characteristics of each individual creature in detail, you may notice an unexpected side to animals. If you have any questions about your observations, be sure to ask the animal care staff.

This time, we asked Miyuki Morikawa, Moe Nishikawa, and Yuiya Hashimoto from Kyoto City University of Arts to create the illustration boards. Thank you for your cooperation.
Enjoy observing fur seals and seals while looking at the newly redesigned illustration board.

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[We asked three students about their impressions of the project!]
Moe Nishikawa (oil painting major)
I had never had a chance to look closely at fur seals and seals, but this time I was able to observe and touch them up close and I learned that each individual is different. Even though the seal looks soft, when you touch it you can feel the hardness of its muscles, and I created it while carefully expressing that texture.

Miyuki Morikawa (Japanese Painting Major)
I've never had the opportunity to sketch animals at an aquarium before, so I was happy that I was able to capture the characteristics of each individual creature while drawing them. I'm glad I was able to be involved in creating illustration boards that will be displayed at Kyoto Aquarium in the future.

Yuiya Hashimoto (oil painting major)
It was a valuable experience for me to not only observe the animals myself, but also to listen to the animal care staff . It was interesting to learn that there are characteristics and habits that only animal care staff who are in contact with the animals every day can understand. Drawing the animals myself made me feel even more attached to them.

From left: Moe Nishikawa, Miyuki Morikawa, and Yuiya Hashimoto