Today I am observing the fieldwork methods of Museum scientists Jo Wilbraham (algae, including seaweed) and Mary Spencer Jones (bryozoans). We depart on the boat from St.Mary's to St. Agnes at 10.15am in calm waters, under clear blue skies.

St. Agnes is a beautiful island, with many interesting locations to collect specimens. We arrive at low tide, which is ideal for finding a diverse range of seaweed and bryozoan specimens. Jo chooses a beach 10 minutes walk east of the quay, where it is possible to wade far out. It takes a while, and some skilled rock climbing to reach where we are going but once we arrive at the tidal interface the diverse range of species is quickly apparent. We see a wide range of seaweeds, sea anemones and polychetes patiently waiting for the tide to come back in and relieve them from the stress of exposure to the mid-day August sunshine.

Jo Wilbraham examines seaweeds great and small at the beach on St. Agnes.

Jo seems quite happy with the spot and comments on the range of species whilst pulling collecting bags and knife out of her pocket and rucksack to begin collecting, making the most of the low tide. The method of exploring and collecting are surprisingly similar to the methods that I use when working in the landscape or on a residency, although the selection criteria and motivation differ considerably. Some of the specimens collected are Furcellaria, Bifurcaria bifurcata and Palmaria palmata.

By this point my walking shoes have flooded after being submerged in shin deep seawater and I am inspired to draw some of the collected species on dry land. I am also preparing for the drawing workshop of creative morphology (a method inspired by Goethe’s ‘Delicate Empiricism’) at Phoenix art studios in the evening.

Drying out my feet and drawing seaweed specimens on the beach.

The free drawing workshop is fully booked, and attendees will be almost exactly half Museum scientists and half St.Marys residents or visitors. Due to the demands of fieldwork some of the Museum scientists are late, which means they have a bit of catching up to do. The workshop builds up observational drawing techniques that prepare the individual for a creative exploration of the morphology of the specimen.

Creative morphology drawing workshop

The group produce some very interesting drawings and discussions. One scientist remarks that they did not expect drawing to have method, rather that it was something they associated with scientific work. This point was important as it helped the scientist to acknowledge artistic research and methodology.

Another scientist remarks that drawing helped them to identify important characters of the specimen, and to engage with it. This was helpful as it led to a discussion of the values of drawing and photography/SEM technologies in scientific work. We end the workshop by considering the relationship between the practice of creative morphology and creative evolutionary processes. 

Specimens collected at the beach on St. Agnes are arranged on a herbarium sheet, ready for entering the Museum's collections.

After the drawing workshop I put a few questions to Jasmin Perera, an entomologist at the Museum:

GA: Do you feel the method helped you to 'know' or think about the specimen in a new or different way? If so, could you try to describe this difference?

JP: Yes the method did make me think a lot more about the specimen. It made it far more memorable structurally. There are parts that I would never have thought of analysing so much that I now know exist, which is great because I would feel far more confident in identifying the specimen if I came across it in future.

 

GA: Do you feel that the method helped you to deepen your engagement with the specimen?

JP: I think I did engage a lot with the specimen, however I feel I get a similar experience when identifying flies under the microscope as the keys we have to follow go into details as little as the length and direction of the little hairs on their body.

 

GA: Do you think this method could be useful in your scientific or artistic work? If so, how?

JP: I would find this method useful in a scientific environment as it would really make me remember any specimen I came across. Especially by pulling the specimen apart, figuring out all the bits that put it together.

After the drawing workshop I visit the Museum field station at the Garrison, St.Mary’s, where I find Jo sorting through the day's collections, soaking and pressing before carefully arranging on a herbarium sheet. The sun is setting, the team is tired and tomorrow awaits...the marvellous world of insects!

Posted on behalf of Gemma Anderson, an artist and PhD researcher who accompanied Musuem scientists on a field work trip to the Isles of Scilly between 17 and 23 August 2013.

Between 17 and 23 August 2013, some of our scientists were back on the Isles of Scilly to carry out more of their studies. This time, instead of someone from the Nature Live team, they were accompanied by an artist and PhD researcher, Gemma Anderson, and she has been keeping a diary of the trip:

Arrival

It is wet and windy and the rain soaks the decks of the Scillonian 3 as it departs Penzance for St. Mary’s. After a bumpy ride with many tales of seasickness, we arrive into a foggy and rainy St. Mary’s to begin the Museum’s August fieldwork trip. We are assured that the weather will get better tomorrow!

Artist on a scientific fieldwork trip?

Artists and scientists are interested in how Earth has been shaped by the forces of nature, and my research addresses how we engage with and observe the natural world. I am here to observe the scientists’ field methods, and to explore possible ways of constructing records across scientific disciplines.

The ‘field’ can be anywhere, it has no geographical or physical bounds; it is defined by those who go there to investigate, study or commune with nature. In this case the field is the islands of St. Marys and St. Agnes, and the people are botanists, entomologists and an artist.

Careful observation and recording of flora and fauna are important skills for both artists and scientists studying the natural world.

The traditions of recording: enquiry, careful observation, patience and arduous experimentation, perseverance in the face of monsoons and parasites (or massive arts cuts!) are shared by artists and scientists. Fieldwork mixes scientific pursuits with exposure to new terrain, languages and peoples and has an inseparable aspect of adventure, from which a narrative of the field has also emerged.

I have previously participated in this narrative as artist-in-residence in the Galapagos Islands, Poustinia Jungle Park (Belize) and rural Japan, where I practiced the field methods of exploration, collection, observation and recording, although the selection criteria and motivations differ considerably to those of the scientists.

Although the focus of my artwork is the morphology of species in the specific location, my approach to the ‘field’ equally values observing and interacting with the people, so culture is just as important. My artistic practice is also a part of this narrative and asks questions about natural form and morphology. Isomorphology is the study of the shared forms of animal, mineral and vegetable species through drawing practice. As part of this research I have been working with Natural History Museum scientists and collections since 2005.

Documenting the art of natural history

Fieldwork is important because of the immeasurable diversity of life, but also because of the human experiences that inevitably arise through study, adventure, and sightings that take place in the field. Record-keeping and field notes exist as a critical component of the study and experience of the field.

I will be emphasizing the role of drawing within these practices, both as a way of recording memories and as a way of experiencing the natural world. The act of drawing can heighten our awareness and sensitivity to the natural environment, changing the way that we see and feel the world around us. Seeing the natural wealth in our environment and our relation to it, can enrich the quality of our lives.

“The scientist does not study nature because it is useful to do so. He studies it because he takes pleasure in it; and he takes pleasure in it because it is beautiful." Jules Henri Poincare

Posted on behalf of Gemma Anderson.