Monkeys for Madonna

Another excerpt from Diario de Noticias yesteray revealed the story behind the creation of the illustration of “Lotsa de Casha” and how Madonna was fascinated by a particular element of the unique style of Rui Paes

During the entire process, the author and the illustrator only spoke twice. “The first time, she called me saying she was very happy with the illustrations. Later it was me to call her asking for some drawings by her children to include in the book, which she sent.” Her feed-backs were being transmitted by the publisher. In the end, she asked only for “one or two minor changes“.

“From my work in the Norwegian castle, she grabbed the ambience and the monkeys into the book,” Paes adds “That’s it. Those are the most striking decorative elements, inspired by the Chantilly Castle, in Paris. […]
It was the monkeys that seduced Madonna. This element is found throughout the whole book. “I had a lot of fun with this work”, Paes says, sort of reflecting about an experience he would like to repeat. There only has to be an invitation and empathy towards the story. He says that having worked with Madonna doesn’t make him superior, but he does acknowledge the importance that having his name next to the material girl’s has for his career. “Inevitably, it will play a determinant role.”

Paes’ work of conception and set-up lasted six months, and the actual painting in watercolour on paper took eight more months. A total of 70 paintings have been prepared, scaled from twenty to forty percent bigger of the actual size of the printed book.

From Diaro de Noticias
Translated from Portuguese by our Team member Pam Anderson