Artist dives into dolphins’ dilemma
Painting a mural of the world’s rarest dolphin helped a Stratford artist realise her dream of creating a book.
Yvonne Mestrom started learning about Ma¯ui’s dolphins when she was asked to paint a mural on the walls of Gr8kidz childcare and learning centre, where she worked as a teacher until recently.
The Ma¯ui’s dolphin is the centre’s mascot, and her mural over the walls of the toilet and bathroom area helped teach the children about them, she said.
Her own interest in the critically endangered dolphins was piqued, and she decided to create a book.
There are an estimated 63 Ma¯ui’s dolphins over 12 months old living off the North Island’s west coast.
‘‘They’re an endangered species worth giving a voice to, and engaging the children in, as they grow up,’’ she said. ‘‘They’re not something you see swimming every day.’’
The result, four years later, is a book written for children in early learning centres and schools, titled Kei hea a Ma¯ui? ( Where are you Ma¯ui?).
She started by writing the story, then began painting the illustrations.
‘‘It’s part factual, part fiction. I’ve centred it in Taranaki.’’
Mount Taranaki, the Sugar Loaf islands and fishing boats feature in the illustrations, along with the dolphins.
‘‘It was a lot of playing. I’d come home and do a page, sketch it up and paint it.’’
‘‘I’ve come to love water colours doing this book. Previous to that I hadn’t done a lot of water colour painting,’’ she said.
The story is written from the dolphins’ point of view, including the danger they face from fishing nets, toxoplasmosis (from cat faeces) and offshore industry.
She has endeavoured to reflect both sides of the debate around commercial fishing with set nets in the dolphins’ habitat off the North Island’s west coast.
‘‘It’s got multiple viewpoints. I’ve tried to balance it, not making it all the fishermen’s fault. It’s a very fine line,’’ she said.
Mestrom, who recently retired from her teaching role, is now considering writing a second book, this time about albatrosses.