Karen Haber Reviews Every Leaf a Hallelujah and Forgotten Gods: The Art of Yoann Lossel

Every Leaf a Hallelujah, Ben Okri, illustrated by Diana Ejaita (Apollo 978-1800241626, £14.99, 112pp, hc) October 2021. (Other Press 978-1-63542-270-2, $22.99, 97pp, hc) February 2022. Cover by Diana Ejaita.

Many science fiction and fantasy art books that were published in the past two years are only making their way to the shores of Locus now. Given the difficulties, challenges, and complications of printing, ship­ping, etc. during the pandemic years, every book that arrives is, to borrow a phrase, a hallelujah.

Every Leaf a Hallelujah is a journey into bold color and imagery filled with constant rewards. The tale by Nigerian novelist Ben Okri, a Booker Prize winner for The Famished Road, follows young Mangoshi’s brave journey into the forest to find a magical flower that is the cure for her mother’s illness. Her journey provides lessons about botany, ecology, and the beauty and im­portance of trees as a precious resource that must be defended and protected.

Diana Ejaita’s clev­er, stylized illustra­tions utilize graphic motifs that call back to African textiles, collage, and woodcut prints. A Berlin-based artist of Nigerian-Ital­ian descent, Ejaita is known for both her illustration work (The New Yorker) and tex­tile/clothing design.

The dust jacket cover with its em­bossed lettering, eye-catching colors, and lac­quer details, gives a glimpse of the pleasures within. The thick glossy paper and exquisite color reproduction contribute to the sensual pleasure of this book. Aimed at children, Every Leaf a Hallelujah would be a lovely gift for any nature lover who enjoys fables and unique illustration.

Forgotten Gods: The Art of Yoann Lossel, Yoann Lossel & Psyche Ophiuchus (Self-published 978-2-493050-00-7, 135pp, hc) November 2021. Cover by Yoann Lossel.

Forgotten Gods is a superb crowdfunded volume celebrating the career of French artist Yoann Lossel. More than a collection of his work and discussion of process, this is a glorious declara­tion of the artist’s raison d’etre, an exploration and explanation of a singular romantic, fantastic sensibility. The deluxe version of the book is itself a literal work of art, featuring gold metallic embellishments and embossing against a forest green cover and gilded page ends in keeping with the artist’s use of gold leaf in his original work. Loving attention has been paid to design elements throughout the volume – including a bound-in ribbon bookmark and patterned endpages – as Lossel and contributors, including co-author, partner, and model Psyché Ophiuchus, consider his vintage-tinged oeuvre.

Featured are both illustrations and details of the artist’s work, encompassing Lossel’s paintings for Beowulf (Eaton Press, 2016). The name of the book refers to the artist’s 2013 painting and his reverence for the forest as a primal source of mystery, power, and magic. An award-winning artist – Lossel’s work was featured on the Spectrum 20 cover – he’s well known for his meticulous paintings combining graphite and gold leaf, which echo the Italian Renaissance, the Symbolist, Pre-Raphaelites, Art Nouveau, and Arts & Crafts movements.

Forgotten Gods is one of the most appealing, high-quality Kickstarter volumes we’ve seen to date. Available in various editions, and not to be missed by anyone who enjoys a deep and ex­hilarating dive into an artist’s unique perspective.

This review and more like it in the August 2022 issue of Locus.

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