All City Canvas

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Prior to the opening of a science center, an important artwork was presented: a new wildlife mural by ROA

The new ROA mural was done at the Museum of the University of Ghent (GUM). The renowned artist created a monumental piece that celebrates his passion for biodiversity and the opening of this venue.

The opening of this science museum was planned for March. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the opening was postponed. In addition, the GUM is located in the heart of the city of Ghent, ROA’s birthplace.

Moreover, this enclosure houses a large collection of natural history. Therefore, ROA found the perfect source of inspiration in the GUM. Thus, the artist’s work captures the skeletons of an elephant, a grizzly bear, an okapi, and a rhinoceros. As we well know, animals and their skeletons are a recurring theme in the artist’s work.

Marjan Doom, director of GUM, said: “I was first introduced to ROA many years ago, when I was still junior assistant in anatomy at the School of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Ghent. I absolutely loved his work.”

In addition, it should be noted that Roa uses native animals depending on where he is painting. Hence, his work is also a call to humanity to preserve all species of fauna, especially those that are in imminent danger of extinction.

“From our first introduction, a dialogue about the beauty of mortality, the complexity of evolution, and how an artist’s eye can force an audience to experience this was born,” Doom added.

Finally, these are some of the images of the magnificent intervention. Don’t forget to check out Codex, ROA’s book with a compilation of his best works.

This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)