Ray Troll
Born in Corning, New York in 1954 and raised as an Air Force brat in a family of 6 kids, Ray grew up in 11 different locales around the states and overseas. Ever since he was knee high to a humpy Ray knew that being an artist was his life's goal. He still wants to be one when he grows up. Ray moved to Alaska in 1983 to spend a summer helping his sister start a seafood retail store. The fish store is long gone but Ray is not. There's something about Alaska that has kept four of the Troll siblings anchored there for decades.
Ray earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kansas in 1977 and an MFA in studio arts from Washington State University in 1981. He is proud to be an honorary member of the Gilbert Ichthyological Society, the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators & a lifetime member of S.P.O.O.F. (the Society for the Protection of Old Fish).
Troll's unique blend of art and science culminated in his traveling exhibit, "Dancing to the Fossil Record," a major show which opened at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco in 1995. The huge exhibit included Ray's original drawings, gigantic fossils, fish tanks, murals, an original soundtrack, a dance floor and an interactive computer installation. In 1997 the exhibit traveled to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport. In 1998 it hit the streets of Philadelphia at the Academy of Natural Sciences.The tour ended in 1999 at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. By that time it had grown to 14,000 square feet.
Ray currently has a new museum show on the road based on his new children's book, "Sharkabet, a Sea of Sharks from A to Z". Venues include the Science Museum of Minnesota (until February 14, 2002 ), the Anchorage Museum of History and Art (March - September, 2002 ), and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh ( November, 2002 - March 2003 ) among others.
In addition to "Sharkabet", Ray has illustrated 3 books with author Brad Matsen : Shocking Fish Tales, Planet Ocean, and Raptors, Fossils, Fins & Fangs. He has also done the illustrations for "Life's a Fish and then You Fry" by chef Randy Bayliss.
He & his wife, Michelle, own & operate the SOHO COHO Contemporary Art & Craft Gallery, located on a spawning stream in the former red light district of Ketchikan. The gallery features Ray's own artwork, t-shirts and fish juju, as well as original artwork by other local artists.
When not at the drawing board, Ray's hanging out with his two teenage kids, Corinna & Patrick. Ray is an avid fossil collecting rockhound and, of course, an ardent angler with questionable fishing skills.
Over the years Ray has done artwork for various conservation organizations including the Sierra Club, Greenpeace and the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council. More of Ray's work can be seen at his website: www.trollart.com
Matt Celeskey
Matt was born and raised in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, birthplace of the American Railroad and three Celeskey siblings. Encouraged by family and inspired by friends, Matt drew and painted his way through school and into the art program at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, earning a BFA in 1995.
While in college, Matt rekindled his childhood love of dinosaurs through frequent sketching trips to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. An eight month internship with the Reptile Department at the Pittsburgh Zoo gave him the chance to study living animals. He enjoyed it so much that he stayed on an additional year with the Zoo's Exhibits Department, renovating animal and human habitats across the grounds.
In 1996, he travelled to New Mexico to work as a graphic designer at the Albuquerque Biological Park. In the 3 years Matt worked there, he helped open the Albuquerque Aquarium, Rio Grande Botanic Garden, and exhibits for koalas, polar bears, and rhinos.
Matt currently works as a designer/illustrator at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, enjoying the opportunity to build habitats for dead animals. His work appears extensively in the Museum's recently renovated Cretaceous Seacoast exhibit, and his skeletal studies are currently being used to prepare the massive mounts of Seismosaurus and Saurophaganax for the new Jurassic Hall, scheduled to open later this year.
Matt has produced work for the Miami Museum of Science and the In-Hand Museum of ANTS, Inc., and his up-to-date illustrations have appeared in Dinosaur Discoveries magazine. His concept sketches were used to create sculptures for Albuquerque's Dinosaur Stompede public art exhibit.
In addition to the PowerSharks! card game, Matt has created a full set of Goofy Dinosaurs online trading cards, which can be viewed at The Hairy Museum of Natural History.