Hsinchu firefighter and artist Harjie Deilo, an Atayal, has recently created a children’s book titled Let’s Learn About Firefighting (認識消防) for the Hsinchu County Fire Bureau, with illustrations inspired by traditional Atayal art and a story set in his childhood village.
Let’s Learn About Firefighting was commissioned by the Hsinchu County Government’s Fire Bureau to teach children basic fire safety, how to recognize fire trucks and ambulances and the need to yield the road to those vehicles, written and illustrated by Deilo of the bureau’s Second Corps.
The self-taught artist is a 47-year-old firefighter from the Atayal community of Hsiujuan Village (秀巒) in Hsinchu’s Jianshih Township (尖石), and has been a firefighter since 1991.
Photo: Liao Hsueh-ju, Taipei Times
A burly, square-jawed man who looks every bit the veteran firefighter, Deilo said his passion for art came from his mother, a lover of watercolor painting and his childhood mentor.
Growing up surrounded by nature, he said he painted on rocks and made paper and woodcarvings to amuse himself, pursuits that he kept to this day.
In his spare time, he said he taught himself computer-generated art on Visio, using the software to make illustrations for firefighter manuals, as well as instant messaging icons based on Atayal totems, hunters, warriors and traditional activities.
The hero of his children’s book, a firefighter owl that has featured prominently in his many works, was inspired by a log on a truck he saw, Deilo said.
The black color of the rotted wood reminded him of the big eyes of an owl, and he later made a wood and bamboo owl sculpture at home that still perches on a fruit tree by his house, he added.
Deilo has created many art installations, home decorations and illustrations that have been popular with his fire corps and beyond, and he has applied to copyright the icons he designed for Line.
“I am thinking about making installation art for the village when I retire,” Deilo said.
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