Visual science communication: GeoArt

Welcome to Science and Art News. I can't wait to explore this fascinating realm with you all. With so many diverse fields of the sciences and the arts, and creative ways that these fields can be combined together, you can certainly expect the unexpected in the content that we will share with you here.

First, let's consider why we should even combine science with art. It can be argued that effective science communication with more diverse public communities is a need worldwide. New means of communication can make concepts and knowledge more accessible and understandable. This is why in an abstract I published at a European Geosciences Union (EGU) conference, I wrote:

Effective and engaging science communication with the wider public is a growing need worldwide, particularly regarding pressing environmental issues. As over half of the population are visual learners, it can be argued that visual arts have an important role to play in science communication (scicomm), when supplemented with clear, understandable writing.

Now, let's take a look at some of the visual means of science communication. We will focus today on a type of SciArt called GeoArt, where geological concepts are shared through visual creativity. Below shows a blast to the past of some of NatureVolve Magazine's published GeoArt creations:

Painters, photographers and illustrators have all been influenced by the earth sciences, and many geological researchers are themselves an artist in their spare time.

There are many other posts of SciArt and GeoArt all across social media, notably Twitter, where you can find trending hashtags all about geoscience communication, such as #MineralMonday #ThinSectionThursday and #FossilFriday

I have personal experience with GeoArt, as while I was studying geology, my favourite method of learning was to sketch and draw. I filled up my field notebooks with landscapes and detailed sketches. After my 2 month mapping project in the North West Highlands of Scotland, I was inspired to do a large scale painting, shown below. Here, I am showing the unique "foliation" texture of the Lewisian Gneiss from close-up and into the distance.

I have since enjoyed sketching fossils, rocks and artefacts that I have found while on travels and expeditions, some of which are shown below.

Drawing may be the traditional form of documenting information from the natural world, but even with the advancing computational techniques we see today, which may seem to make these traditional methods obsolete, there is something unique to a piece of art drawn by hand. In the context of science communication, drawing may help the artist and the observer of the art deepen an understanding of what they are looking at. It is no surprise that drawing is a useful educational tool in its own right.

There are so many aspects to the earth sciences that inspire many forms of art, what I have shared here today is barely scratching the surface, but I hope that it has been an enjoyable introduction to this new term of GeoArt.

That's all for today, but I will be sharing more forms of GeoArt with you in the weeks ahead. Do you have any examples of GeoArt, whether it be a photograph you have taken or a piece of artwork? Please do let me know and share it in the comments below!