The Paleontology of New Mexico
7:42 pm
Detail of the Parasaurolophus painting I did
for the cover of Paleontology of New Mexico
I’m happy to announce the release of a new book—The Paleontology of New Mexico by Barry S. Kues. Dr. Kues is a professor of paleontology in the Earth & Planetary Sciences Department at the University of New Mexico with a longstanding interest in the prehistory of our state. The handsome cover (more on that later) states that this is an updated and expanded version of Dr. Kues’ 1982 work, Fossils of New Mexico. But since that time, so much fieldwork and research has been done around New Mexico that this work is literally twice the size of its predecessor, and almost entirely rewritten.
The book follows a familiar format—a few introductory chapters, followed by a chapter-by-chapter look at the fossils known from each geological period through the Paleozoic & Mesozoic Eras, and by epoch through the Cenozoic. (The least fossiliferous chapter of New Mexican prehistory? The highly volcanic Oligocene, which takes up less than a page in this book.) The text is written in a style I’d describe as “accessible scientific,” and the book contains numerous black and white illustrations, mostly compiled from the primary literature, which provide ample visual appeal for the interested non-specialist. All in all, this volume is a very solid overview of the current state of paleontology in the State of New Mexico.
I do want to thank Barry Kues and the publishers at UNM Press for giving me the opportunity to create a painting for the cover—a dapper Parasaurolophus tubicen hooting at dusk on the shores of a steamy Cretaceous riverbank in what is now northwest New Mexico. (And a big thank you to Mina Yamashita at the Press for a cover design that really pops the painting off of the jacket!)
The Paleontology of New Mexico is available online now – from UNM Press, Amazon, and the Museum of New Mexico Foundation Shops.
This looks like it’ll be a great read! Thanks for the post, Matt!
By the by, do you know anything about the UNM geology program? I’m considering transferring there after I’ve finished everything up at Mesalands Community College and was wondering if you had any advice.
Best wishes, mate!
-Mark
Hi Mark – thanks for the comment! I don’t know very much about the UNM Geology program, so I can’t offer any specific advice, but maybe some folks with more familiarity will weigh in here.
–and nice work on the Theatrical Tanystropheus–I’ll have to add that to the blogroll, pronto.
Thanks for your response! I’ve already contacted Tom Williamson about it (I may join him on a dig at some point before I transfer) and I plan to converse with Dr. Kues later on…I’m just trying to absorb as much info about their program as I can at this point.
Many thanks for your comments on ‘The Theatrical Tanystropheus’! I’d very much appreciate a link!
Hi Matt,
I like your painting. So many paleo artists focus exclusively on anatomy and the surrounding environment is just an afterthought. I like the depth that your painting style provides – contrasting light and dark tones in the dinosaur and the foliage works very well.
I also appreciate your treatment of the anatomy – avoiding a long nuchal ligament stretching from the shoulder blades to the crest.
Hi, Matt!
Thanks for the kudos, but it’s easy to do a book cover with great artwork! And I’ll confirm as a paleontology lay person that this is a great book for anyone who wants to learn more about New Mexico’s fascinating origins.
Mina
Well done, Matt! Is this your first book cover?
Thanks for the compliments, everyone!
Scott – yep, this is my first full-fledged book cover, though I don’t plan on it being the last!
Matt – having focused a lot on the anatomy of animals in much of my prior work, I’m glad you feel the environment works in this piece! Dr. Kues gave me some good pointers regarding the appropriate flora in this scene; the tree is a magnolia, with conifers and palms in the background, and the mudplantain Heteranthera in the foreground. For the Parasaurolophus anatomy, I was heavily influenced by recent reconstructions of the brachylophosaur “Leonardo”–there’s a modest nuchal ligament there, from the shoulders to the back of the skull, keeping it from being too swan-necked–but I agree, it’s hard to envision a crest that long directly connected to the shoulders!
Wonderful cover art. Congrats!! And thanks for the heads up!
Wonderful work, Matt!
So this isn’t a symposium-type book? I’ll probably pick it up either way, but it hasn’t made it to our B&N yet, so I haven’t gotten a chance to check it out.
Looks brilliant! Well done and congrats!
Gorgeous Matt!
One of my favourite dinosaurs of all time. I can remember visiting the holotype at the Royal Ontario Museum since I was a lad.
Excellent illustration, congratulations!
Congratulations, Matt! It looks beautiful!
Nice work, Matt! The cover looks amazing! Is there somewhere we can see more of your artwork?
Thanks again to the new commenters! There are a lot of links popping up I need to make sure I add to the list…
Zach – nope, this isn’t a symposium volume. I’d characterize it as more of a one-volume overview or reference for those interested in the field and area.
Peter – there are a lot of my pieces floating around this site–anything that isn’t clearly credited to another artist ought to be something I’ve done. I definitely need to compile more into the ‘galleries’ section of the site.
Another place that has a fair amount of my work is the NM Museum of Natural History and Science website, where I work during the day. I don’t have the luxury of illustrating full-time there, but over the years I’ve done quite a bit of drawing and painting for that institution.
About half the pieces on these two pages are ones I did for the Triassic exhibit that opened last year. Generally speaking, the more brightly-colored restorations are mine, and the others are by artist Mary Sundstrom (a couple are actually collaborations that we both worked on). I’m generally happy with these, but there are some that I’d definitely like to revisit at some point, as new interpretations for several of these animals are out there and my understanding of the anatomy is undergoing refinement.