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Beto Val (born Roberto Valencia Cevallos in Quito, Ecuador, 1973) is an Ecuadorian-French visual artist, filmmaker, and author. He is known for his surreal digital collages, the illustrated book The Great Book of the Imaginary Animal Kingdom, and the animated short film The Strange Case of the Human Cannonball.
Artistic Career
editBeto Val is recognized for his contributions to digital collage, particularly through a distinctive approach that combines classical illustration with imaginative reinterpretations of natural history. His visual language explores hybrid beings, botanical elements, and symbolic imagery that challenge conventional logic while evoking poetic associations.
Working primarily with public ___domain materials—such as 19th-century scientific engravings, botanical manuals, encyclopedias, and anatomical drawings—Val reconstructs historical visual sources into contemporary compositions. His works have been described as visual fables that balance absurdity, tenderness, and aesthetic intricacy.
Val began creating digital collages during the COVID-19 pandemic, initially as a personal project. This evolved into a consistent artistic practice, and his work has since been exhibited and collected in various countries including the United States, Mexico, Spain, France, Germany, Switzerland, Brazil, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
His art has appeared in outlets such as Colossal, the Rubin Museum of Art, VisualFlood, Art in Rug, and Aatonau. He has cultivated a wide audience through social media and collaborated with publishing, design, and cultural institutions on projects ranging from editorial illustrations to product design.
His imagery was featured on the cover of the children's edition of The New York Times, and his series—including Wild Saints, Medieval Superheroes, and The Botanist's Bestiary—have been highlighted for their playful reinvention of scientific and mythological motifs. Val has said: "I work as if nature had taken a different evolutionary path."
He is currently involved in curatorial and collaborative art initiatives that aim to bring his work into museum and institutional contexts across the Americas and Europe.
Background
editBefore focusing on visual art, Val worked in advertising with agencies such as McCann Erickson. His visual language integrates surrealism and retro aesthetics, shaped by his experience in publishing and graphic design.
He is also co-creator of the Ecuadorian children's magazine Elé! and the character El Capitán Escudo, regarded as Ecuador’s first superhero.
Media Coverage
editHis work has been featured in:
The New York Times Kids Edition cover
Notable Works
editThe Great Book of the Imaginary Animal Kingdom (2021)
The Strange Case of the Human Cannonball (2023, short animated film)
Series: Impossible Animals, Wild Saints, Little Creatures
Style and Technique
editVal’s technique involves reconfiguring antique imagery and vintage cutouts into surreal compositions. He integrates analog textures with digital tools to create imaginative, poetic narratives that echo natural history and science fiction.
Film
editIn 2023, Val wrote and directed The Strange Case of the Human Cannonball, a short animated film dealing with themes of migration and identity. The film has been selected by over 100 international festivals and received more than 40 awards.
Highlights include:
Homeless Film Festival, Bilbao
Rome Independent Film Festival
New York International Children’s Film Festival
Thessaloniki Animation Festival, Greece