The World of Gerard van Oost and Oludara

Posts Tagged ‘honors’

The Elephant and Macaw Banner in the Whitney Plantation Museum of Slavery

I’m honored to announce the contribution that The Elephant and Macaw Banner was able to make to the Whitney Plantation Museum of Slavery.

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Last year, Dr. Ibrahima Seck, Academic Director of the museum, entered in contact with me and Leonardo Amora, asking permission to include the painting “Arrival in Salvador” as part of their permanent collection. I had commissioned this painting from Amora back in 2010, to represent Gerard’s arrival in Salvador, although it just as easily represents the tragic arrival of the slave ships from Africa. Both of us readily agreed to donate a permanent license to the museum. You can also find the image on their website, listed as “Portuguese Caravel”.

I’m honored that The Elephant and Macaw Banner was able to make this contribution, however small, to further education about the terrible past of slavery in the Americas. Education is the only way we can begin to correct the effects of these wrongs which continue on today.

If you’re ever near Wallace, Louisiana, please pay the museum a visit and see for yourself the incredible educational work they’re doing there.

MonsterBed Tribute

Last week, I was honored to receive an unexpected tribute from the team at MonsterBed Game Studio.

This painting by Ander Mathias shows Astro, star of the video game AstroMonkey: Hitball Arena, proudly holding The Elephant and Macaw Banner.

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Here’s a picture of me with three members of the team at my recent book launch. As you can see from my t-shirt, I’m a big fan!

1507518_703997573050898_3972103815645930859_oJosé Francisco Moreira, Christopher, Lucas Saldanha, and Felipe Peruzzo Milkewicz

My heartfelt thanks to the team for this beautiful gesture, and I wish them great success on their many fantastic games to come!

Douglas Cohen writes about “The Fortuitous Meeting”

Douglas Cohen, the editor who chose “The Fortuitous Meeting of Gerard van Oost and Oludara” from the Realms of Fantasy Magazine slush pile, recently published a retrospective on issue #93 of the magazine, the one in which the story was published.

In his retrospective, he has many kind words to say about the story, and gives an interesting look at the process which led from slush to a selection as a finalist for the Nebula Award for Best Novelette.

In honor of the retrospective, here’s a picture of me with Douglas and Shawna McCarthy (founder of Realms of Fantasy and Fiction Editor at the time of the story’s publication) at the Nebula banquet in 2011.  If I’m not mistaken, Realms of Fantasy recorded nine finalists (and two wins) for the Nebula Award during its run, with two of the finalists that year: mine and “How Interesting: A Tiny Man” by Harlan Ellison (a winner). It was a very special night for all three of us, one of my most unforgettable moments.

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Thanks so much, Douglas!

Visit to the Anhetenguá village

In one of my greatest honors to date as a writer, I was invited to the Tekoá Anhetenguá, a Guarani village, on October 22nd to discuss the portrayal of indigenous peoples in fiction. This village, located in the middle of Porto Alegre’s suburban sprawl, fights to pass along the traditions and culture of the Guarani. It was a pleasant day, everyone was wonderful and friendly, making me instantly feel at home. An oral culture, they explained to me how writing is new to them, but they see it as a great possibility of recording their stories and traditions. As their chief put it, “everyone has a story to tell.”

Respecting their traditions, I didn’t take any pictures, but the images of that visit will stay in my memory forever.