Dulk’s ‘Skvader’ Mural In Kungsbacka, Sweden

Antonio Segura Donat aka Dulk, was born in Valencia in 1983. As a child, he was inspired by illustrations of exotic animals he found in his parents’ collection of old encyclopedias, and was never without his sketchbook.  At the age of nineteen, he started working under the moniker of Dulk and went on to study illustration and graphic design at The University of Valencia.  His talent not only spans street art, drawing, painting and sculpture: he is also now considered one of the leading figures of the Spanish illustration scene.

Dulk’s work has evolved remarkably in recent years but remains the same in essence. His characters are often inspired by his dreams and everyday events, a mixture of facts and fiction. Dulk’s vivid imagination delivers a pop-surrealist twist to his beautifully stylized compositions.  Although his pieces may appear ebullient from afar: the recurrent theme is one of animal antagonization.  With the same innocent perspective he had as a child, Dulk creates these tragi-comic works using an organic, chromatic color palette and insanely detailed brushstrokes.  The imaginary details in his scenes (such as the hallmark targets on the animals) signify the creatures futile cries against human evil; the danger they face and the environmental destruction surrounding them.

Curated by Artscape Festival, this new mural in Kungsbacka, Sweden is of a Skvader, a creature from a Swedish tale hunting story told by Håkan Dahlmark at the beginning of the 20th century. Dahlmark claimed in 1874 that he had shot such an animal during a hunt north of Sundsvall. On his birthday in 1907, his housekeeper jokingly presented him with a painting of the animal, made by her nephew and shortly before his death in 1912, Dahlmark donated the painting to a local museum. During an exhibition in Örnsköldsvik in 1916 the manager of the museum became acquainted with the taxidermist Rudolf Granberg. He then mentioned the hunting story and the painting and asked Granberg if he could re-construct the animal. In 1918 Granberg had completed the Skvader and it has since then been a very popular exhibition item at the museum.