A desktop touched by Midas: Oracular Oriole

In the poem “To an Oriole” [1], novelist and poet Edgar Fawcett inquires about the origin and nature of the oriole. He likens the northern song bird to a “scrap of sunset with a voice” and an orange tulip in a forgotten garden that was magically transformed. This type of poetic and mystical imagery around Orioles can be found throughout classical literature and mythology. In many cultures, their presence was considered a divine and prophetic symbol of creativity, prosperity and community. These three virtues are rather synonymous with the spirit of Ubuntu and therefore we wanted to ensure our muse was given an artistic interpretation befitting its oracular aura.

Ubuntu 24.10 aims to capture the bird “that Midas touched” [2] in it’s official wallpaper:

You can download the official Oracular Oriole wallpapers in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes here.

As above, so below

When tasked with depicting our aureate mascot, the Design team at Canonical found inspiration from astrological iconography. Marcus Haslam, the Magician, explains:

“Incorporating the adjective (Oracular) with the Oriole was indeed a challenge.  I wanted this to be in keeping with the brand elements we have in our design system. The use of the circle, line illustrations and color palette fit in well and a good starting point.  My first task was building the Oriole bird out of concentric circles, this would form the centerpiece. As it progressed I added other elements to the design to bring in “Oracular.” The (all seeing) eye with the circle of friends inside was a gift, and the crystal ball added a playful aspect to the mascot.  I added planets around the outer edge to complete the Ubuntu world. When animated these move into position with a nod to the circle of friends logo.”

“Designing the mascot I always had the animation in the back of my mind and how it may work. The concentric circles  proved a very useful asset, it created a nice rhythm and movement for this Oracular mythical world.”

Vicennium visions

As tradition, our official wallpaper is accompanied by artwork submitted and voted upon by the community. The categories for this release being: Mascot, Digital Art, Photography and 20th Anniversary. Our many artists, photographers and pixel wizards provided dozens of beautiful submissions with two chosen from each category for inclusion. It’s our great honor to present the winners of the Oracular Oriole wallpaper competition:

Mascot Category

Oriole Mascot (Light\Dark) – @moskalenko-v

The Oracular Oriole – @meetdilip

Digital Art Category

Einsamer Raum – @orbitelambda

Arizona Nacht – @orbitelambda

Photography Category

schabing 2 – @schabing

Sunset – @gafreax

20th Anniversary Category

Legacy (Light/Dark) – @aaronprisk

Warty Remastered – @romactu1

Getting Involved

The Ubuntu Wallpaper Competition is just one of many ways you can contribute to the Ubuntu community. Discover how you can get involved at: https://sne.bianheman.eu.org/community/contribute

References

[1] https://allpoetry.com/To-An-Oriole

[2] https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Poems:_Second_Series_(Dickinson)/The_Oriole