Tomislav Torjanac won the global contest and was chosen to illustrate the new edition of Life of Pi. Tomislav Torjanac--How are art and literature connected? How does the analysis of one help the analysis of the other? How were you able to transfer your reading of Life of Pi to the canvas? How does this book lend itself to visual creation? Please tell us about your reading and painting process. Thank you very much.
BVHS Students--Post questions for Mr. Torjanac here.
87 comments:
Hello BVHS Students,
Mr. Christensen kindly asked me to share some of my ideas/comments about Life of Pi, so I’ll set up a podium with what I hope is a not-too-long introductory note.
I chose to illustrate Life of Pi because it appealed to me on many levels: visual, emotional, thought-inducing level... There’s the vast blueness that was Pi’s world for so long, there’s the isolation, there’s the silence in which all you can hear is your inner self...
Life of Pi is a first-person narrative, so I decided to paint all the illustrations from Pi’s perspective. Aside from the idea of involving the reader more on a visual scale, my intention was not to affect his/her own image of Pi, so we never get to see Pi’s face -- all we see are his hands and feet. I thought this device was appropriate because Mr. Martel never described Pi. In his words: “It’s irrelevant what Pi looks like, as it is irrelevant how any of us looks like”. To put it another way, I tried to add another dimension to the story, to broaden its reach, to complement it, but never to compete with it. Mr. Martel is fond of saying that illustrations add to a book what music adds to opera, and I agree with him. I see the illustrations as an extension of the words, as the idea behind words, expressed.
This book deals with what is, in my opinion, the ultimate truth: that reality is what we make it, that perspective creates perception i.e. how one looks at things determines how one sees them. (Not much different from what the quantum physicists have been telling us in recent years.) So, once we reach the end of the book, the ball is obviously in our court, and we don’t just get to choose one of the two stories told to the investigators but much more than that. In my opinion, we get to create the meaning of it all, which is a relatively subtle way to plant the seed of a notion that we are the sole creators of our reality.
Feel free to toss a question this way.
TT
Tomislav Torjanac wrote: "As for your question, the US edition of Life of Pi: Illustrated was published in October last year, so it should be available in most bookstores. Here's the Amazon.com link: http://tinyurl.com/5cjnh4"
Mr. Torjanac--For the painting that has the three religious leaders, did you choose the positioning? Is it important that, for instance, the priest is on Pi's left? And tell me about the red balloon, please.
The art and literature are connected in various ways. Pi is feeding the Richard Parker a shark. Richard Parker knows that if he eats Pi, no one is going to feed him anymore. The analysis of this picture represents the book by explaining what Pi does for the shark, and how the shark acts back. He doesn't show Pi's face because we dont actually know what Pi looks like in the book. It is never explained.
The picture of the 3 men shows how Pi saw the men at this time. They were big and mean because he was afraid of their reaction to him believeing in 3 different relgions pictures like these can help us understand the novel by showing the reader what the characters are thinking.
I love the fact that the illustrated version of the novel was painted in Pi's point of view! I think it would really make a difference when reading the book since by using "I" instead of "Pi" Yann Martel wanted us to read the book from Pi's perspective. I really like the picture with the three wise men. Them towering over Pi shows how low he feels and how big of an impact they have on him. I think the red balloon is a nice touch. I believe it looks like Pi has let go of his innocence and has to take on something greater than a boy of his age really should.
Mr. Torjanac,
As I read your post above i saw that you write with many literary devices. Are you too an author? Have you ever thought about writing a book? Or did mr. martels writing style of using so many literay devices just rub off on you?
This is our teachers favorite book of all time. What is your favorite book?
Nate N. asked the question above, Mr. Torjanac--I told you I have some of the finest students in the U.S.
Mr. Torjanac,
In the process of creating the artwork for Life of Pi did you ever stop and think what it would be like if it were you in Pi's position and if so did that contribute to the way you drew a particular piece? Also by not showing Pi's face it does allow the reader to keep their own idea of what Pi looks like however I would be very much intersted to see how you would portray Pi yourself.
Mr. Torjanac,
What in this book inspired you the most? Is there a section of the book that really meant something to you? I love how on your website that you put the progress of how you made the pictures. I am not a good artist but I love learning what process goes on in one's mind to create such pieces of art.
What was your first inspiration that made you want to become an artist? What is your favorite subject to do art on?
Mr. Torjanac--Have you read this novel more than once? If so, how have your interpretations changed or improved since your first reading?
Mr. Torjanac--Why is this novel good for analysis and deeper thinking? Why is it ideal for students on their way to four-year colleges?
Mr. Torjanac,
In you paint of the men give Pi food. Did you paint it so the man looks like he's bowing to Pi. Or did that just happen on its own.
Mr. Torjanac, what was your reaction when you found that your artwork was chosen to represent the final illistrated copy?
In "The Gate" (http://www.lifeofpi.co.uk/illustrated/illo-gate.php) how were you able to make all the animals look so friendly? They bid Pi farewell for the day each morning, and Pi describes it with the exact tone/mood/feeling with which you paint.
Mr. Torjanac,
I love the fact that you have put all of your illistrations for this book into pi's perspective put in your thought process did you ever think about having some of your illistrations in this book be of Richard Parker's perspective or some of the other characters perspectives
What songs would you put on a soundtrack for this novel?
Mr. Torjanac,
when and how did you first become interested in art? from what i can see on your website there are two different versions of "The Life of Pi: Illustrated Edition." is there any difference to the pictures in the two and if there is which is your favorite version? i love your artwork. they really compliment the book and help prevent Mr. Martel's ideas from a different prospective.
Have you heard anything about the film version of this story?
Mr. Torjanac do you think Yann Martel made this book easier for you to illustrate by his excellent use of literary devices, and his ability to describe scenes? Also I couldn't help but notice in your pic of the three wise men that their faces are all very similiar, other than the hair. Did you do this on purpose to show the similarities between religions, or am i looking too closely?
Mr. Torjanac,
My favorite piece of art that you have painted was the three wisemen. So far in the book it is my favorite scene. Mostly because they all want Pi to be apart of their religion. They all are fighting like children on a kickball team to who gets the oldest kid. They do not believe that you can believe in all three religions at once, do you?
Torjanac,
With your painting of the three religious figures, does the red balloon in the background represent free-thinking, free thought? Do you agree with many of the points of this novel, and is that why you chose to do many different pieces of art about it?
Above, I said it was my favorite scene like it was a movie. When I read books I try to picture what is going on. When you read a book do you try to imagine a masterpiece?
I think that the art work is really important to a books success. The front cover is what draws your reader to read the book. Most little kids only read a book that has colorful and many pictures. I also like the way the drawings are from pi's perspective. I think it helps you understand the book better this way. Have you illustrated for any other books?
Why did you feel the need to not show Pi's face? Did you want to leave it up to the reader to decide? What made you decide to do the illustrations from Pi's point of view?
Ashlie's right--The cover of the hardcover Harcourt edition first gripped me, when I was working at Barnes and Noble. Covers can help people judge books! (But keep in mind Martel's words: It is absolutely irrelevant what Pi looks like, just as it is irrelevant what each of us look like. I think he is talking about the lunacy of racism.)
i agree completely with torjanac. life is what we make of it. one can look at one thing and see it one way but another can look at the same thing and see something completely different. same in art. do you have your own meaning for your art or is it numerous and left up to the viewers.?
Mr. Torjanac--
First off I would like to say how awesome it is that you have made your illustrations from Pi's point of view. It keeps the imagination working and wondering what Pi actually does look like. What led you to paint things from Pi's point of view? Did you start out to put him in the pictures and then change your mind? Or was having pictures from his point of view the original intent?
Mr. Torjanac--What do you make of the algae island? Is it a hallucination? A symbol? Something that is "implausible, but not impossible"? Have you painted any scenes from on the island?
Mr. Torjanac,
I am impressed by how you are able to portray passages of literature in a perfect sense of reality. Is this something that comes natural for you, or do you have to read and pick out the details of the passage to make sure you don't miss anything of importance?
i would love it if you checked out my portfolio for me. 'lydiart.blogspot.com'
What kind of emotions did you experience when you learned your art would be included in the illustrated edition?
Well literature and art are connected because the saying "A picture is worth 1000 words", well inorder to say those 1000 word you need to know some literacy. The same goes for literacy, books are the best literacy around, if you read a lot of books then you will get more visual art in your mind so you can picture what you read.
Which are the best zoos you've attended? What makes them great?
I also think it's really neat that you painted these pictures from Pi's perspective. It only makes sense really, but sometimes when I see how other's portray a person in a book, it confuses me because it messes with my mental picture. It's a nice little detail.
How long did it take you to paint this painting, or any of them for that matter?
I went to the MN Zoo in Apple Valley MN. Its a very nice and big zoo. There is a lot of animals that have wide open areas to go around and be almost "free" in a sense. There is a lot of cool animals that they have to.
Thank you for your post. It is really interesting and I like how you made all the art from Pi's point of view just like the book. It gives us the reader a visual point of view to go along with the writen one. What did you like the most about the book and how did you convey that in your art?
First off I just wanted to complement you on your amzining art. My favorite painting of yours is where the animals are dressed up like little children. Does that symbolize the animal's behavior at the zoo? What is your opinion's on zoo's? Do you think all animal's should be free or do we need zoo to continue to the the science of animals
By having a visiual image to go along with the literature, people are able to understand it more. If you have two examples of something (writing and illustration) you can also connect to it more. Then if you just have one of them.
Your art is so intense, but relaxed at the same time. I really like the costume painting it is slightly amusing and all around I just like it. The technique you have is impressive. How did you come to paint for life of pi? Do you paint for other novels?
I liked how you put the art in Pi's perspective. I think that pictures of books are great because they make you visualize what you are reading and helps you understand the novel better.
I really like how this piece is drawn from Pi's perspective. It's just like the book. We never find out what Pi looks like, and instead of using "Pi" Martel uses "I". This picture helps me to read the novel because I can picture Pi throwing the shark towards Richard Parker.
Have you always wanted to be an artist?
Your artwork is really impressive and helps the reader to visualize what is going on and what the animals look like. When you found out that you were going to illistrate this book what was your reaction and were you at all surprised.
When literature and art are combined, it helps people to more thouroughly understand a book. When pictures are on pages of books it helps people visualize what they may not have if they weren't there.
Mr. Torjanac,
First off, I'd like to say that your artwork is fantastic. Your style of painting helps alot. For example, the picture above the link to get here is designed as if you were actually Pi. That helps me get a better visual of what Pi himself is actually seeing. What has inspired you to do these wonderful pieces of art? Has painting/art always been your first choice of work?
Again, thank you for blogging with us.
you work is really good and it is a good visual that goes with the book. why did you decide to take on the challege of painting/illistrating for Life of Pi?
When did you become intersested in art? And how did you decide to do all these paintings from pi's point of view?, also did you discuss any ideas with Yann Matel about how he wanted it illustratted or did you just paint it the way you felt it needed to be illustrated?
Mr. Torjanac: What gave you the idea to illustrate the book from the perspective of Pi? I think it was a novel idea that puts the reader literally in Pi's shoes.
I think that your work is excellent. The three wise men picture looks as if they are hovering over Pi or anyone for that matter as to which religion he should choose. But he has chosen all of them so there is no need to pick one. They also look as if they could be God looking down upon him or any of us for that matter. Is the red balloon supposed to be significant of something in the book?
Mr. Trojanac
i love the way you decided to paint your perspective of Pi. It's awesome that you still leave it up to the reader to determine how pi looks because if a character is created with a physical description that people can see that part of the book is lost forever and leaves nothing to the imagination and that is the best part about books. I'm am also curious though, about your choice in postions of the three religious leaders, or rather why. i realized while reading the book that it always goes christian, muslim, hindu. that is how he visitied the churches in order and thats how they show up in order to talk to pi and thats how you have them painted. i was just wondering if you knew why or you just painted it that way because you might have noticed too.
I love how you did your paintings from Pi's perspective. What made you decide to do your paintings in this way?
Mr. Torjanac,
Do you feel you aid readers when it comes to understanding this novel, and do you enjoy doing it? Or did you just help illustrate the book to put a paycheck in your pocket?
Is there one book you would give anything just to illustrate for it? If so what book? Is this the one?
I was looking through your paintings, and I was wondering how you came up with the ideas for these paintings?
Mr. Torjanac,
I love how you choose to illustrate your paintings in a way how the reader can choose what the character should look like. It also looks as if you can be apart of this painting since its viewed in first person.
Hello, here are my answers to your yesterday’s questions. I hope I answered all of them.
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mr. christensen said...
Mr. Torjanac--For the painting that has the three religious leaders, did you choose the positioning? Is it important that, for instance, the priest is on Pi's left? And tell me about the red balloon, please.
Yes, the positioning of the three holy men was my choice. The order was dictated by the position of the hands -- praying gestures -- which rise in an almost diagonal succession, thus increasing the tension (imagine the effect of a slowly raising conductor’s hand while conducting an orchestra).
The perspective is exaggerated -- as it is on many other illustrations in the book -- so we have a Catholic, Hindu and Muslim, shown as looming towers.
This illustration follows the illustration on pg. 53 of the book (“Love. That was father Martin’s answer.”), which features the same positioning. You can see the illustration here:
http://www.torjanac.com/images/tt-pi-pg53.jpg
It’s a religious triptych of a sort, through which, by means of motifs of my own choice, I interpret the subject of love in all three religions Pi practices. We have, from left to right:
- maternal love of Virgin Mary for her son Jesus and for all people (the dominant colour is blue as the colour of Virgin Mary and Christianity);
- love of Krishna and Radha, which also represents the human soul’s longing for union with the divine, since Krishna is a supreme being (the dominant colour is orange as the colour of Hinduism);
- Taj Mahal, the monument to eternal love of emperor Shah Jahan for his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal (the dominant colour is green as the colour of Islam).
All three parts of the triptych are actually details of the much bigger images, because “God is love” but also “God is in details”.
As for the meaning of the red balloon, please read 5fontenillea*’s spot-on comment.
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*-5knightt-* said...
The art and literature are connected in various ways. Pi is feeding the Richard Parker a shark. Richard Parker knows that if he eats Pi, no one is going to feed him anymore. The analysis of this picture represents the book by explaining what Pi does for the shark, and how the shark acts back. He doesn't show Pi's face because we dont actually know what Pi looks like in the book. It is never explained.
Now that you mention the shark, this illustration is a good example of a challenge I was faced with when doing things from Pi’s perspective. You see, human field of view is horizontal (it’s wider than it is high), whereas pages in the book are vertical (they are higher than they are wide). In this scene, you have a tiger (a “horizontal” animal that walks on 4 legs), a shark (also a “horizontal” animal), a horizontal lifeboat, a horizontal sea surface, plus the very act of throwing is horizontal. Fitting so many horizontal elements to the vertical format without it looking unnatural was definitely a challenge.
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#23 said...
The picture of the 3 men shows how Pi saw the men at this time. They were big and mean because he was afraid of their reaction to him believeing in 3 different relgions pictures like these can help us understand the novel by showing the reader what the characters are thinking.
Yes, Pi was afraid of their reaction, but I wouldn’t call them “mean”. More like “very disappointed with” and “angry at” Pi.
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5fontenillea* said...
I love the fact that the illustrated version of the novel was painted in Pi's point of view! I think it would really make a difference when reading the book since by using "I" instead of "Pi" Yann Martel wanted us to read the book from Pi's perspective. I really like the picture with the three wise men. Them towering over Pi shows how low he feels and how big of an impact they have on him. I think the red balloon is a nice touch. I believe it looks like Pi has let go of his innocence and has to take on something greater than a boy of his age really should.
Thank you, 5fontenillea* -- great comment. Your interpretation of the red balloon is what I had in mind when I painted it.
Btw, that scene takes place on a seaside esplanade: “It was a lovely, breezy, hot Sunday afternoon and the Bay of Bengal glittered under a blue sky. Townspeople were out for a stroll. Children screamed and laughed. Coloured baloons floated in the air.”
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5neubergern said...
Mr. Torjanac,
As I read your post above i saw that you write with many literary devices. Are you too an author? Have you ever thought about writing a book? Or did mr. martels writing style of using so many literay devices just rub off on you?
This is our teachers favorite book of all time. What is your favorite book?
Thanks, 5neubergern -- that is a very flattering thing to say to someone whose first language is Croatian -- but I am not an author. I toured the States with Mr. Martel for 17 days to promote the book, and I’d be verya happy if during that time just 0.1% of his brilliant literary talent had rubbed off on me.
My favourite book? It’s hard to say because I read a lot and have many favourites, but Life of Pi is definitely among them.
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5sheffieldj#1 said...
Mr. Torjanac,
In the process of creating the artwork for Life of Pi did you ever stop and think what it would be like if it were you in Pi's position and if so did that contribute to the way you drew a particular piece? Also by not showing Pi's face it does allow the reader to keep their own idea of what Pi looks like however I would be very much intersted to see how you would portray Pi yourself.
It wasn’t hard for me to put myself in Pi’s shoes while reading/illustrating the book. For example, I love animals and I can’t imagine harming them or killing them, so my choice is not to eat them. It really got me thinking what I would have done if I had been, like Pi, starving in the middle of the ocean (I hope I never get the opportunity find out). That definitely contributed to the way I painted the illustrations.
I’m not sure if I could portray Pi, especially after a year of painting things from his perspective. In my mind, he has no face and thousands of faces at the same time.
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1stowaterm said...
Mr. Torjanac,
What in this book inspired you the most? Is there a section of the book that really meant something to you? I love how on your website that you put the progress of how you made the pictures. I am not a good artist but I love learning what process goes on in one's mind to create such pieces of art.
It’s a very visual and thought-provoking book. For me, the pivotal moment was the one when Pi is interrogated by the two Japanese investigators (although many would regard this section as peripheral to the main drama).
I’m glad you find the stages of my work interesting.
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7kringenlindz said...
What was your first inspiration that made you want to become an artist? What is your favorite subject to do art on?
I was always interested in art. As a kid I used to read lots of history books and encyclopedias -- what interested me was the paintings and drawings inside. I used to spend hours just looking at them and studying them. I also read lots of comics (I especially liked early “Popeye” strips, “Little Nemo” and South American and European comics). And, of course, I drew a lot.
I chose to become an artist because I believed it was the best way to express myself.
My favourite subject? I like thought-provoking themes. I also like painting hands.
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mr. christensen said...
Mr. Torjanac--Have you read this novel more than once? If so, how have your interpretations changed or improved since your first reading?
I have read it many times (I first read it a few months prior to finding out about the competition). It’s hard to say exactly how many times I've read it, because I re-read some chapters over and over in order to get all the details right so as not to stray from Mr. Martel’s detailed descriptions. I thought that was very important, because in the microcosm of the lifeboat every rope is important and every hook has a meaning much bigger than in everyday life.
My interpretation improved after I had discussed it with my partner (she had read it a couple of weeks later).
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7petersend said...
Mr. Torjanac,
In you paint of the men give Pi food. Did you paint it so the man looks like he's bowing to Pi. Or did that just happen on its own.
I’m sorry 7petersend, but I’m not sure which image you are reffering to. There is a dinner scene on the page 76 of the book where we can see Pi’s family sitting at the table. Being a traditional Indian family, they eat with their fingers and with their right hand only. The food on the table is authentic South Indian food, as is in Pi’s imagination many pages later.
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jenna said...
Mr. Torjanac, what was your reaction when you found that your artwork was chosen to represent the final illistrated copy?
I was taking a nap when Mr. Martel called to tell me I’d been chosen to illustrate the book, so it was an instant and really pleasant wake-up call. I didn’t have any expectations really.
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mr. christensen said...
In "The Gate" (http://www.lifeofpi.co.uk/illustrated/illo-gate.php) how were you able to make all the animals look so friendly? They bid Pi farewell for the day each morning, and Pi describes it with the exact tone/mood/feeling with which you paint.
Thank you. It was my intention to make them friendly and the way Mr. Martel described them. I should also add that we are not just looking through Pi’s eyes, we are in his mind, and some of the illustrations in the book are obviously from Pi’s imagination... or maybe it’s most of them? Depends on which of the two stories you choose to believe.
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gbeesley020 said...
Mr. Torjanac,
I love the fact that you have put all of your illistrations for this book into pi's perspective put in your thought process did you ever think about having some of your illistrations in this book be of Richard Parker's perspective or some of the other characters perspectives
I’m glad you like Pi’s perspective. I haven’t thought of doing the illustrations from some of the other characters’ perspectives, but it’s an interesting idea. What do you think of hyena’s perspective?
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mr. christensen said...
What songs would you put on a soundtrack for this novel?
It’s a really good question, but also a tough one. Teaming up Ravi Shankar, Talvin Singh and Lisa Gerrard would be nice, for example.
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7merkelt said...
Mr. Torjanac,
when and how did you first become interested in art? from what i can see on your website there are two different versions of "The Life of Pi: Illustrated Edition." is there any difference to the pictures in the two and if there is which is your favorite version? i love your artwork. they really compliment the book and help prevent Mr. Martel's ideas from a different prospective.
Thank you, 7merkelt. For the answer to your first question, please see my reply to 7kringenlindz.
As for the two versions of the book, they are both hardcovers and contain the same illustrations and the same number of pages. The difference is that the UK cover shows the rear half of the tiger, while the US edition shows the front half (when you put them together, you get the whole cat). Also, the UK edition has illustrated endpapers, a bookmark ribbon and a linen spine, plus it was printed on a matte, cream coloured paper (which gives the illustrations somewhat “antique” look). The US edition has a jacket and was printed on a glossy, white paper.
Oh, and a small correction -- there’s no “the” in “Life of Pi”. Mr. Martel’s said that ‘the’ would imply there was only one life of Pi (whilst there are two stories, two lives). On the other hand, ‘A Life of Pi’ just didn’t sound right to him.
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6knudtsond-_-_-_-_nuts! said...
Mr. Torjanac,
My favorite piece of art that you have painted was the three wisemen. So far in the book it is my favorite scene. Mostly because they all want Pi to be apart of their religion. They all are fighting like children on a kickball team to who gets the oldest kid. They do not believe that you can believe in all three religions at once, do you?
I really like the kickball team analogy.
I think one can practice one, two, three or more religions at once and believe in God. Also, one can practice no religion at all and still believe in God.
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7flinte*ylime* said...
Torjanac,
With your painting of the three religious figures, does the red balloon in the background represent free-thinking, free thought? Do you agree with many of the points of this novel, and is that why you chose to do many different pieces of art about it?
Interesting interpretation, 7flinte*ylime*.
I did 40 paintings for the book, so you have an illustration every 12 pages or so. We didn’t want to overcrowd the book with the illustrations, and 40 seemed like a fitting number.
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6knudtsond-_-_-_-_nuts! said...
Above, I said it was my favorite scene like it was a movie. When I read books I try to picture what is going on. When you read a book do you try to imagine a masterpiece?
Same here -- when reading a book I see images in my mind, based on what I’m reading and mixed with my personal preferences, experiences etc. They aren’t masterpieces, although quite often they do look painterly.
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7andrewsa said...
I think that the art work is really important to a books success. The front cover is what draws your reader to read the book. Most little kids only read a book that has colorful and many pictures. I also like the way the drawings are from pi's perspective. I think it helps you understand the book better this way. Have you illustrated for any other books?
Good point. Also, many grown-ups would label an illustrated adult book as a children’s book (which, of course, Life of Pi isn’t).
I have illustrated a number of book covers and children’s books, but mostly for Croatian publishers.
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7hoeket<3 said...
Why did you feel the need to not show Pi's face? Did you want to leave it up to the reader to decide? What made you decide to do the illustrations from Pi's point of view?
Yes, I wanted to involve the reader more. I also believe some people would have expectations of how Pi should look like and maybe react to my interpretation with “I don’t like his hair” or “I didn’t imagine his nose was that big”. I don’t think people would have as many expectations when it comes to the tiger’s look or the look of Pi’s parents.
Of course, I don’t plan on doing every future illustration like that, but I think that worked very well with Pi.
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mr. christensen said...
Ashlie's right--The cover of the hardcover Harcourt edition first gripped me, when I was working at Barnes and Noble. Covers can help people judge books! (But keep in mind Martel's words: It is absolutely irrelevant what Pi looks like, just as it is irrelevant what each of us look like. I think he is talking about the lunacy of racism.)
I agree. I have a number of books sitting on my bookshelf which I bought simply because I liked the cover... and it turned out I liked all of them once I read them. I should also mention I read Life of Pi because I loved the bird’s-eye-view cover illustration by Andy Bridge.
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lydia :) said...
i agree completely with torjanac. life is what we make of it. one can look at one thing and see it one way but another can look at the same thing and see something completely different. same in art. do you have your own meaning for your art or is it numerous and left up to the viewers.?
I have my own meaning and I’m glad if people can see it by looking at my paintings. I also like hearing an interpretation which is different from mine.
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7rommanne said...
Mr. Torjanac--
First off I would like to say how awesome it is that you have made your illustrations from Pi's point of view. It keeps the imagination working and wondering what Pi actually does look like. What led you to paint things from Pi's point of view? Did you start out to put him in the pictures and then change your mind? Or was having pictures from his point of view the original intent?
Thanks, 7rommanne. Painting things from Pi’s perspective just seemed like a natural thing for me to do. However, I did made one early sketch where I drew Pi from behind (so, again, we don’t see his face), holding a turtle shell and trying to train Richard Parker. It was a good sketch, but I wasn’t happy with it. Then I painted two Japanese investigators as seen from Pi’s perspective, which felt just right, so the rest followed.
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mr. christensen said...
Mr. Torjanac--What do you make of the algae island? Is it a hallucination? A symbol? Something that is "implausible, but not impossible"? Have you painted any scenes from on the island?
Yes, I have painted a few scenes from on the island.
If one chooses to believe the story without the tiger, the algae island could be interpreted as a product of Pi’s imagination, the “Garden of Eden” he created in his mind during his near-death experience. It is on that island that Pi trains Richard Parker -- a wild part of himself he needed in order to survive. It is also where he finds a molar wrapped in leaves. A molar could be interpreted as a symbol of wisdom (“wisdom teeth” are a type of molar), but it’s also something that scared the living daylights out of Pi, snapped him out of lethargy and forced him to move on.
If one chooses to believe the story with the tiger, one has to accept the island as well. Mr. Martel said “it’s a test of reader’s faith, it’s something just out of reach of what we can reasonably grasp. In other words, you have a boy and a tiger surviving in a lifeboat in the middle on the ocean for 227 days. How possible is that? Well, it is possible, and the reader is ‘on board’. Next is a meeting of two blind castaways in the middle of the ocean. The odds to it happening are quite low, but the reader is still ‘on board’. Finally, in comes the algae island, and here’s where the reason will inevitably kick in and try to make excuses for a reader: ‘it’s a hallucination, a make-belief’ etc. But, in order to accept the story with a tiger, it would require a reader to take a leap of faith and to stop being reasonable, thus asking herself/himself: ‘what do I know about Pacific, what do I know about sea plants, what do I know about meerkats.’”
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7myrliea ^_^ silent pimp said...
Mr. Torjanac,
I am impressed by how you are able to portray passages of literature in a perfect sense of reality. Is this something that comes natural for you, or do you have to read and pick out the details of the passage to make sure you don't miss anything of importance?
Thanks.
While working on Life of Pi, I was trying not to “clash” with Mr. Martel’s descriptions (for example, he describes the lifeboat to the tiniest of details), but was also exercising my “artistic freedom” whenever possible. The final illustration in the book is a good example of the latter.
7fostercbucknasty said...
Mr. Torjanac do you think Yann Martel made this book easier for you to illustrate by his excellent use of literary devices, and his ability to describe scenes? Also I couldn't help but notice in your pic of the three wise men that their faces are all very similiar, other than the hair. Did you do this on purpose to show the similarities between religions, or am i looking too closely?
I accidentaly overlooked your message yesterday, so I’ll reply to it now.
Some of the illustrations were based on Mr. Martel’s elaborate descriptions of particular scenes, while some “grew” out of a simple sentence (as is the case with the aforementioned religious triptych). I found Mr. Martel’s writing very inspirational which certainly helped in my forming the visuals for the book.
As for the three wise men -- no, you are not looking too closely. Well spotted.
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7petersend said...
Mr. Torjanac,
In you paint of the men give Pi food. Did you paint it so the man looks like he's bowing to Pi. Or did that just happen on its own.
torjanac said...
I’m sorry 7petersend, but I’m not sure which image you are reffering to. There is a dinner scene on the page 76 of the book where we can see Pi’s family sitting at the table. Being a traditional Indian family, they eat with their fingers and with their right hand only. The food on the table is authentic South Indian food, as is in Pi’s imagination many pages later.
Apologies, 7petersend. I've just realized you were referring to the illustration with the two Japanese investigators (I don’t know how I failed to see that). It’s titled “There goes our lunch” and it takes place in a hospital in Mexico. While the investigators question Pi, he manages to rob them of their last bits of food (he’s still that hungry). Because they were on the road for a long time and are very hungry themselves, Mr. Okamoto -- the senior investigator -- hands their last sandwich to Pi reluctantly, but still in a very ceremonial, Japanese way. Thus the bow.
Tomislav Torjanac put a link to our class blog on his website, which is seen throughout the world (www.torjanac.com). Good for him for winning this contest--and good for him for acknowledging the brilliance of the other artists as well.
Mr. Torjanac
~Knowing the truth is half of the game, it is only when opinions come into play that the mind flourishes. "novel is about the line between fiction and fact. It is about how we interpret reality, right? Reality isn't just out there; it's how we interpret it."-Yann Martel- Being a distinctive Painter/Artist does the vision ever become clear when painting, do you better understand Pi Patel and his accomplishments?
Matt K
Mr. Tomislav
Your depictions of Life of Pi are very accurate, what gave you the inspiration to do these certain scenes? What made you pick up the book and first read it? What made you decide to choose to do this novel and not a different one? Is Life of Pi a favorite book of yours? Have you painted any pictures for any other novels?
period 3
I think this painting is very intersting. When I first looked at I didn't really understand what was going on. As I read through some of these posts it is amazing how much detail and hidden meanings Torjanac did to make this painting the way it is. First of all I thought it was very interesting how all three religions are hidden in here-the blue being Christian, the orange being Hinduism, and the green being Islam. When he talks about everything had to be horizontal in the painting in order for it to be in Pi's perspective made me think that this painting probably took him a very long time. I never thought of the red balloon symbolizing "Pi has let go of his innocence and has to take on something greater than a boy of his age really should" because I kind of took it as Pi showing he doesn't need anyone to watch him anymore. Yann Martel must be very brilliant and likeable because if Torjanac says he wishes to have 0.1% of his intelligence, and I think Torjanac is brilliant, then Mr. Martel must be an extremely smart guy. I like how he doesn't show Pi's face in the picture because it makes us think that Pi can be any of us. When I look at this painting the arms of, who I think is Pi, catch my eye. They don't look like any person in their teen's arms. Maybe Torjanac did this on purpose to make Pi seem like he is an adult because he has been by himself for 200+ days in the middle of an ocean. From just looking at one of Torjanac's paintings to actually analyzing it and reading questions about it gives this painting a whole different perspective.
Why do you suppose these artists are willing to blog with a high school class in South Dakota?
pd. 5
This photo really gets to me think and gets me to put myself in Pi's place. When I look at this picture I see myself throwing the shark at Richard Parker and it makes me begin to wonder what I would actually do if I was stuck on a small life boat with a bengal tiger, in the middle of the ocean, without many supplies for over 200 days.
This is the perfect example of what it would be like to be in Pi's position on the boat. how you would handle the situation and showing strength against the odds. i like how you see the correspondence with the 1st person narritive and the 1st person pictures.
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