For my first impuls I chose the book series “Enzyklopädie des Wunderbaren”. The series has right now 6 volumes:
- Volume 1: Witches by Cécile Roumiguière, 2022. Illustrated by Benjamin Lacombe
- Volume 2: Fairies by Sébastien Perez, 2022. Illustrated by Bluebirdy (Fatemeh Haghnejad)
- Volume 3: Dragons by Cécile Roumiguière, 2023. Illustrated by Yvan Duque.
- Volume 4: Monsters by Sébastien Perez, 2023. Illustrated by Stan Manoukian.
- Volume 5: Ghosts by Sébastien Perez, 2024. Illustrated by Isabella Mazzanti.
- Volume 6: Ogres by Cécile Roumiguière, 2024. Illustrated by Etienne Friess.
The collection explores the mythological worlds of the different mythological and folklore creatures. Each book offers not only stories about cultural myths, but also visually beautiful illustrations. These books inspired me to combine visual media with folklore tales and to find different styles to fit to different topics.
A key feature of this book series is that for the past 3 years, two books were published every year, one written by Cécile Roumiguière and one by Sébastien Perez. Each book is illustrated by a different artist. This collaboration gives each book its own unique style, so that each category can be connected to one.
The storytelling in the series is very imaginative and often poetic, combining history and fantasy. Each book has its own unique storytelling approach and structure, designed to match the creatures it talks about and a distinct illustration style to fit with it:
»Witches« includes mystic illustrations, which show mystery, which aligns with the stories of misunderstood wisdom and magic. »Fairies« is a more ethereal style and captures a more delicate, otherwordly nature. »Dragons« has very bold and vibrant visuals, which show the majesty of these legendary creatures. »Monsters« is done in a more grotesque style, showing more primal and powerful illustrations. »Ghosts« is very melancholic, evoking the beauty and emotional depth of stories, centered around loss. »Ogres« has very earthy and rough styles, showing the wild and untamed nature of these massive creatures.
This collections matters to me, because it has given me a lot of ideas for my Master’s Thesis, especially about storytelling and how to combine different stories with different illustration styles. What I love most is how the illustrations in these books are not just decorations, but are part of the story. Each artist’s unique style helps the book’s thematic come to life and this reminds me how important it is to match visuals to the story’s mood message. Additionally, the book collection is made for kids, structuring the stories as such, trying to make different folklore and mythological creatures and stories interesting to children.
