Baptiste Drausin is a self-taught French illustrator whose interest in both pop culture and the state of our planet leads to thought-provoking, politically charged works of art. Here, Drausin imagines what would happen if our favorite Disney characters and comic book superheroes were caught up in the middle of ecological disasters. The familiarity we have with the subjects in the illustrations makes the message all the more powerful and will leave you thinking twice about our current efforts to preserve the world we inhabit.
1. Mowgli And His Extinct Friends
This is heartbreaking. From the beloved story of The Jungle Book, Mowgli - the boy raised by animals in the jungle - stands in front of a display of the taxidermied and now-extinct Baghera, Baloo, and King Louie, the animals who became his family. Head hung in shame, Mowgli feels guilt and pain for the results caused by humanity.
2. Ariel And The Polluted Ocean
When we think about The Little Mermaid, we think about Ariel’s habitat as being one of vibrancy and biodiversity. Pollution? Not so much. However, this is the reality across swathes of our planet. Thanks to reckless human behavior and an inability to dispose of waste efficiently. Drausin shines a light on plastic packaging here with Ariel getting tangled up in one just like marine life in our oceans.
3. Santa Claus In A Time Of Global Warming
Taking a fictional character we all know to demonstrate the self-destruction of our planet, this illustration of Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus literally clinging on to the remains of their natural habitat brings a tear to the eye. Drausin’s take on climate change isn’t overly exaggerated, as the polar ice caps have been melting at an alarming rate for years now. Where will Santa and his workforce of Elves plan Christmas when the North Pole is destroyed?
4. Bambi And The Fallen Forest
Bambi’s big eyes look devastated, as he contemplates the desolation of forest land in front of him. To supply the consumerist demand for products such as palm oil, hundreds of thousands of square miles of deforestation has taken place globally over the last few decades. This is troubling for so many reasons, and it is perfectly articulated in Bambi’s crestfallen demeanor.
5. Aquaman In The Oil Spill
Even Aquaman can’t save marine life from the horror of an oil spill. In this desperately sad illustration, the superhero cradles a seahorse who has succumbed to yet another avoidable industrial disaster. The BP oil spill of 2010 caused devastation in the Gulf of Mexico and is the largest of its kind in the history of the petroleum industry. Sadly, there have been over 50 oil spills since then, and nature always pays the highest price.
6. Donald Duck And The Foie Gras
There are few specialty foods more controversial than foie gras. This French delicacy is the liver of a duck or goose fattened by force-feeding corn with a feeding tube. Drausin pulls on our heartstrings by showing the American icon, Donald Duck, being forced into this cruel practice as his children watch on in horror.
7. Mary Poppins Can’t Fix Pollution
Mary Poppins is the bearer of joy and happiness, but in Drausin’s poignant illustration, she is forced to wear a gas mask to cope with the pollution levels in, presumably, London. Air pollution is a global epidemic which sadly, not even Mary Poppins can fix.