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A yearly book · in the making

The Most Realistic Alien

2027–2126 · Year 1 of 100

One book a year, for 100 years: how Earth imagines aliens.

Vol. 1 · 2027: every alien whole, numbered and never graded. A time capsule of how we imagined them.

A CRE8 Foundation project · initiated by Ole Ukena

The book, closed: bright white cloth, the title in black, a green furry alien by Kodai N., 11, Tokyo, saffron edges and a saffron ribbon.
Mock-up. The book is in the making. The trade edition: bright white cloth, the title in black satin foil with a deboss, the alien by Kodai N., 11, Tokyo, whole, saffron painted edges and a saffron ribbon.
The Most Realistic Alien, the book film · 1:00 · Work in progress: the music is still to come.
Vol. 1, turned page by page (mock-up) · 0:28 · Work in progress: the music is still to come.

Draw an alien.Make it realistic.

One volume a year

Each volume carries its year. The format, the sections and the entry stay the same, so ten volumes read as one shelf, and you can see what changed.

Every answer counts

Every drawing whole, with equal weight. The plates follow how the aliens look, not where they come from; the place is in every caption, the map and the index.

A field guide with no grades

Each alien gets an entry: its number, its name, the artist and age, place and year, superpowers, where it's from. What is not on record prints as “—”. The line for a grade stays empty.

Inside Vol. 1

The book open on pages 20 and 21: a photo of Kodai holding his drawing, and his alien on a full page.
Pages 20–21 · No. D002 · Kodai N., 11 · Tokyo, Japan · Grade: — · Mock-up. The book is in the making.
  • An open spread with sixteen alien drawings in a grid, each whole, with a small caption.
    A grid of 16
  • An open spread with photographs of the workshop in Bogotá, Colombia: a classroom, and six children holding up their drawings.
    Where they were made: Bogotá, Colombia
  • An open spread with the white-cube exhibition at Thaillywood, Thailand: drawings hung on white walls.
    The wall: Thaillywood, Thailand
  • An open spread listing the places where the aliens were drawn, by continent.
    Where the aliens landed

Four editions of Vol. 1

The four editions of Vol. 1 side by side: three in bright white cloth, one in black cloth with a saffron title.
Mock-up. The book is in the making.
  • The trade edition cover: bright white cloth, the title in black, the green alien by Kodai N. whole.

    Trade edition

    Bright white cloth, the title in black satin foil with a deboss.

  • The numbered edition of 100: bright white cloth with a mirror-silver title.

    Numbered, 100 copies

    Bright white cloth, the title in mirror silver.

  • The numbered edition of 10: bright white cloth with an inset holographic plate.

    Numbered, 10 copies

    An inset holographic plate on bright white cloth, with an original drawing by Ole Ukena.

  • The one-of-one edition: black cloth with the title in saffron.

    One of one

    Black cloth, the title in saffron, with a section drawn by hand by Ole Ukena.

Saffron painted edges and a saffron ribbon on all four: the colour of Vol. 1. The materials follow swatches, foil tests and printer quotes.

Three books stacked: Vol. 1 on top with saffron edges, two white copies below for the volumes still to come.
White and black stay fixed; the edge colour changes with each volume. Saffron is Vol. 1. Mock-up. The book is in the making.

Our promises

  • No child's original drawing is ever sold.
  • The collector editions differ only in their materials and in Ole Ukena's own work.
  • From 18, anyone can ask to leave future printings; online, their drawing comes down at once.

Where it stands

Sample spreads drawn · new scans needed · places being checked · no date set.

The Most Realistic Alien, the project