Art and Biodiversity

Posted by Alex H.

I love combining topics. My field of study is a combination of biology, psychology, and ecology; I'm attending a liberal arts institution, as a Boy Scout I earned over 60 merit badges (far above average), and the list goes on. When all is said and done, my favorite combination of two topics is animals and artwork (as can be witnessed by a previous post of mine). I'm just giddy to see two of my favorite topics combining with such a natural feel!

My passion for seeing art and animal diversity combined may be why I have been drawn to a couple of articles lately.

First check out this summary of a project done by an undergraduate through the School for Field Studies (SFS). This student organized the painting of several murals in Baja, Mexico emphasizing the conservation of sea turtles. That's herpetology, conservation biology, and artwork - all rolled into one!

Additionally, my academic adviser relayed this neat project to me: The Hyperbolic Coral Reef. Here's a quote from their website:

The Institute For Figuring is crocheting a coral reef: a wooly celebration of the intersection of higher geometry and feminine handicraft, and a testimony to the disappearing wonders of the marine world.

What a wild idea, right? There's a lot going on here, but to summarize, a feminist crocheting organization has responded to declining coral reefs by expressing their beauty in a knitted form. Using a fairly new style of knitting, "hyperbolic crochet," inanimate yarn is 'brought to life' in the form of corals, anemones, urchins, you name it. One of the organization's representatives, Margaret Wertheim delivered a lecture on our campus yesterday, but unfortunately, I arrived at the wrong location and missed the boat. Bummer luck, but their expansive website should please your visual palate.

Share your favorite art-fusion links in the comments below.

Here are a few more pictorial examples: