Copyright Date:
2024
Edition Date:
2024
Release Date:
06/04/24
Illustrator:
Stacey, Melodie,
Pages:
1 volume (unpaged)
ISBN:
1-949480-28-3
ISBN 13:
978-1-949480-28-3
Dewey:
759.13
LCCN:
2023032768
Dimensions:
28 cm.
Language:
English
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews
An artist's remarkable work brought undersea life to wide public notice.German immigrant and artist Else Bostelmann (1882-1961) painted life under the ocean while working for renowned marine scientist William Beebe; while taking part in expeditions for the New York Zoological Society (now the Wildlife Conservation Society) in the 1930s, he dove beneath waters off the coast of Bermuda in a bathysphere. Few had investigated the mysterious world under the seas; fewer still had painted it. Else B., as she was known, not only painted the glorious plants and bioluminescent animals found beneath the ocean but, wearing a copper helmet, took her art supplies (steel pencils, zinc plates) underwater with her to record the magical, almost unimaginable world below. The extraordinary images she produced, published in National Geographic magazine during the Depression, were well worth it. The book pays homage to some of Bostelmann's beautiful, detailed, accurate paintings. Stacey's conceptualizations of them, rendered in gouache, watercolor, pastel, and colored pencil, are lovely; the backmatter includes reproductions of Else's art. The works are dazzling and convey how extraordinary undersea life is. The text isn't quite as captivating, though readers will likely be interested in how Else fared underwater and what she discovered during her explorations. Unfortunately, some terms used in the text are neither defined nor pronounced for readers' benefit.A little-known female artist receives well-deserved attention. (author's note, more information on topics explored in the book, math conversion table, map of Bermuda and environs, photo of Else Bostelmann, selected sources) (Informational picture book. 6-9)
Bibliography Index/Note:
Includes bibliographical references.
Else B. in the Sea is a poetic picture book biography about a daring and pioneering woman artist that combines themes of art and science from author Jeanne Walker Harvey and illustrator Melodie Stacey.
Else Bostelmann donned a red swimsuit and a copper diving helmet and, with paints and brushes in hand, descended into the choppy turquoise sea off the coast of Bermuda. It was 1930, and few had ventured deep into the sea before. She discovered a fairyland six fathoms below the surface—fantastic coral castles, glittering sunbeams, swaying sea plumes, and slender purple sea fans. And fish! Flashy silverfish, puckering blue parrotfish, iridescent jellyfish.
Else painted under the sea! She painted what she saw with her own eyes, and, back on land, she painted the never-before-seen deep-sea creatures described by world-renowned scientist William Beebe on his momentous 1930s bathysphere expeditions for the New York Zoological Society’s Department of Tropical Research. It was a daring and glamorous adventure and a dream come true for Else B., who shared this new, unfathomable world with humankind.