Mauricio Antón brings prehistoric life to San Telmo
San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián is tracing Mauricio Antón’s career through paintings, drawings and digital reconstructions of prehistoric life. Open until 21 February 2027, the exhibition sets out how evidence and imagination enter paleoart. Its route moves from early Mesozoic illustrations to extinct animals and human evolution, alongside activities for schools and other visitors.
Arts··Midday
Paintings and drawings trace a career
San Telmo Museum in San Sebastián, Spain, is presenting a retrospective of Mauricio Antón, the Bilbao-born artist who reconstructs prehistoric life. Mauricio Antón: arte y paleontología remains open until 21 February 2027. The exhibition follows his professional work through images of extinct animals and human evolution.[1], [2]
San Telmo organised the presentation, prepared by the Archaeological and Palaeontological Museum of the Community of Madrid. Oil paintings, original drawings and large digital reproductions were selected from Antón’s research collaborations and his contributions to museum exhibitions, books and magazines. A separate part of the display sets out the process of reconstructing past life.[1]
Fossil evidence meets the artist’s reconstruction
Antón defines paleoart as giving visual form to scientific hypotheses about past life. He describes a balance between close attention to evidence and the imagination needed to fill gaps left by an incomplete fossil record. His reconstructions place extinct animals within their environments. In depictions of human evolution, social expectations and ideas about past societies also enter the images.[1]
The exhibition begins with early illustrations of Mesozoic life, including dinosaurs. After the explanation of reconstruction methods, two principal sections follow. Fossils and Living Animals presents prehistoric environments; Family Matters: Human Evolution in Images turns to humanity’s extinct relatives.[1]
Research collaborations extend to books and films
Born in 1961, Antón has worked professionally in palaeontological illustration since 1988. He has collaborated on scientific articles with the palaeobiology department of Madrid’s National Museum of Natural Sciences, part of Spain’s research council CSIC. His books include El secreto de los fósiles and Sabertooth, and he has contributed to palaeontological documentaries for the BBC and National Geographic.[1]
The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology awarded him its scientific illustration prize in 2006. In 2020, he held the Wayne G. Basler Chair of Excellence at East Tennessee State University and taught paleoart. San Telmo has published part of the earlier exhibition catalogue in Basque and prepared activities and visits for schools and the general public.[1]
