The Significance of Dinosaur Art

1010 Words3 Pages

The Significance of Dinosaur Art

Dinosaurs are creatures that seem to fascinate humans, since all we have left are their fossils. Although, through art, their bodies can be put back together and we have a better sense of what they looked like. The problem with art is that pictures can sometimes be disproportionate, unrealistic, or even made up. Young children who learn about dinosaurs may think that they are actually different colors and can talk for example. This is why it is important to make dinosaur art as realistic as possible and more informative.

In an article titled, "Do They Really Look Like That? The Science Of Dino Art", writer John Roach discusses people who do art and paleobiology for a living. A man by the name of Chris Sloan is a paleo artist for National Geographic in Washington, D.C.. He's not just a simple artist for the magazine, but also a researcher. He has to do activities such as "attend paleontology conferences, read scientific journals, study dinosaur fossils, talk with scientists, and go on digs"(National Geographic Society 2). This is in order to make dinosaur illustrations attractive to the eye and scientifically accurate.

Being a paleo artist also requires paying close attention to the most recent discoveries. New discoveries happen all the time, and artists are very dependant on the information so that they can start their next project. It is important, however, not to be fooled by incorrect information, or hoaxes, which also happens a lot. A good paleo artist will do extensive research on the new information and get to the bottom of it before beginning a piece of art. Sloan, for example, will "read scientific papers, visit paleontologists, or sometimes travel to where a dino...

... middle of paper ...

...r work published.

In the future, many more discoveries of dinosaurs will be made. This way, paleo artists are never without jobs. Their work is very important and will be used always. It is important to note that “art is a reflection of science” (Sloan 2). Generations to come will need to know the truth about dinosaurs, what they looked like, and environments they lived in, so as long as scientists keep making more discoveries, dinosaur art will continue to become more realistic and accurate.

Sources

1. Roach, John. “Do They Really Look Like That? The Science of Dino Art”. National Geographic Society. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/03/0310_030311_dinoart.html 2004

2. Speed, William. “What Did Dinosaurs Really Look Like…And Will We Never Know?”. Discover. http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dlm/m1511/9_21/64698201/p7/article.jhtml?term= Sept 2000

Open Document