La Sierra art prof’s first illustrated book depicts Alaska’s Arctic tern

“This luminous celebration captures the astonishing aerial feats and migratory path of an Arctic tern family as they navigate the perilous elements and dodge voracious predators. The masterful command of light and dark, illustrating vast and mysterious worlds bring to mind the wood carvings of Gustave Doré, a French Printmaker from the 1800s,” notes an exhibition statement. “This exhibition showcases a creative journey, no less epic in scale from concept through execution. For both the Arctic tern, and Timothy Musso, the story (and exhibition) is as much about the journey (and process) as it is about reaching home safely, or seeing the printed book in the hands of a child.”

With key scientific information imparted in easily understood story-form language, “Chasing the Sun” takes readers of all ages on a visual odyssey into the life of an Arctic tern family depicting the birds’ environments, life events and potential deadly encounters with other wildlife each month of its incredible zigzagging migration journey between Earth’s poles. Images on the book’s pages began as sketches which were based on photographs and research, with final images carved with gouges into blocks of wood which were then coated with black ink using a larger roller. Large sheets of paper were pressed onto the inked blocks, creating a stamped effect, with detailed, intricate images emerging.

“I would hope that people see this animal as a metaphor for exploration and experiencing new things, and traveling and being fearless,” said Musso. “And I think there’s also a sense of humility,” in light of the birds’ mysterious navigational skills of which scientists have little knowledge. These innate abilities allow the terns to re-direct to their destinations when blown thousands of miles off course by a storm over the ocean.

Musso’s artwork from the book was also displayed this summer at the Newport Beach Public Library. Since its publication, “Chasing the Sun” has received positive reviews including from Publisher’s Weekly which described the work as “a visually stunning picture book that blends accuracy and a sense of wonder. …inconspicuous maps note the month and global location of terns traveling to and from nesting grounds in this bravura sequence, which finds poetry in scientific observation.”

A recent review from Children’s Literature includes the following summarization; “Musso’s handmade wood carvings are mesmerizing, majestic illustrations that hook readers in to the journey. Young readers may wonder why there are bands of lines throughout each illustration and will be delighted to understand their meaning later in the book.” 

The inspiration for Musso’s book is linked to his family.

“I've been thinking about doing this book for about a decade since my nieces and nephews were first born,” said Musso. “I wanted to make one but I didn't know what to make it about. And then when I saw that bird, like instantly it clicked, that’s it, I'm making about that. When I got back [from Alaska] I did research and there were no other picture books about Arctic terns that I could find.”

The 2018 trek was Musso’s second in Alaska. As a boy he had traveled through its southern regions in a motorhome with his family. Decades later, the journey into the roadless Arctic Circle to raft one of its icy rivers involved a flight northward from Fairbanks to the indigenous Arctic Village, and then another flight further north over the Brooks Range to begin the two-week rafting adventure.

In developing “Chasing the Sun,” Musso drew upon information researched from various sources including The Moore Lab of Zoology at Occidental College in Los Angeles where he captured an understanding of the bird’s secondary feathers. He received assistance from various La Sierra University campus members including avid birders Vernon Howe, a professor emeritus mathematics faculty member, his son, Andrew Howe, a current history professor, and Vernon’s wife Winona Howe, a professor emeritus English professor who provided writing guidance. Additionally, La Sierra Art+Design students Adrianna Rodriguez, Jackie Hernandez, Kayla Perkins, Alana Ciccarelli and Perry Tahir assisted with printing and framing tasks.

Musso grew up in the wild foothills of the Motherlode, California, so named for the seam of gold first discovered by Europeans in 1848. Musso’s childhood was filled with exploring the forests, rivers, and mountains of the northern Sierra Nevada wilderness. As an exhibiting artist and naturalist, Musso creates wood and linocut prints, often in large scale based on images and rubbings of trees, plants and other elements of nature he obtains while on weeks-long treks that function as sabbaticals. His expeditions have taken him throughout the American Southwest, throughout the Sierra Nevadas and the Pacific Crest Trail, and internationally including the mountains of New Zealand.

Recent exhibits of his work have taken place at the Missoula Art Museum in Missoula Montana in 2022, the Wonzimer Gallery in Los Angeles in 2021, and the Sydney Contemporary Art Fair in Sydney, Australia in 2019. His art is among permanent collections of the Fort Wayne Art Museum in Indiana, the Zuckerman Museum of Art in Georgia, and Montana's Missoula Art Museum.

This past spring Musso trekked throughout Utah’s Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument on another artistic sabbatical. “While I was there I was thinking I’d love to do another book about the desert there,” said Musso. “So I wrote a story and I did a bunch of sketches and photos. And then as soon as I got back, this publisher [The Creative Company] said, ‘Hey, we want another book.’ So this summer, I've been working on using those photos and sketches from my time in Utah and working on new compositions and new artwork and a new story.” 

For more information about Musso, his artwork and “Chasing the Sun” picture book and exhibit, visit timmusso.com or email tmusso@lasierra.edu. “Chasing the Sun” is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Target, and book publisher The Creative Company.