Spanish paleoartist Mauricio Antón participated in a virtual Earth Day Q&A session about his new documentary, “Appalachian Awakening.”
“I call it a portrait of nature next to home to emphasize the fact that I got to come up close with these new, wild acquaintances of mine,” said Antón, in an opening statement for the session.
Antón was the Basler Chair of Excellence at ETSU in spring 2020, where he taught paleoart classes. The documentary was made during his stay on campus.
“I was really eager to get to know the nature of East Tennessee as a bonus with my experience teaching there,” said Antón.
The film clocks in at just over 32 minutes and captures an up-close look at the wildlife and scenery that surrounds ETSU and the greater East Tennessee area. The landscape, according to Antón, is unique in terms of geology and history, but it carried familiarity for him.
“In terms of having old, rounded mountains, and mostly deciduous forests, it’s like some parts of northern Spain,” said Antón. “It’s the kind of forest I would have longed to be surrounded by during my youth.”
During the Q&A session, which was hosted by a panel of professionals from Gray Fossil Site and ETSU, Antón was asked about the relationship of current species in East Tennessee to the fossils researched and displayed at Gray Fossil Site.
“When you think of the Gray Fossil Site, the most spectacular things range from the Red Panda to the Mastodon,” said Antón, neither of which have direct descendants remaining in the area.
“I think one very interesting connection to the past, but more to the Ice Age, than to the Miocene, was the story of the salamanders,” he continued. “I was really amazed that you have such diversity of species in such a relatively small area.”
Antón is now back in Madrid, where he continues his career creating paleo illustrations while waiting on travel clearance for his next expedition to Tanzania.
“That’s the kind of expedition that makes me very excited, but there are all those uncertainties related to the pandemic,” said Antón. “So, I have to keep my suitcases ready, so to speak.”
Antón’s film is available online through the end of April. To view the film, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66w_haQhUeE.
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