Written by Ingrid Yeung ‘23
Science in Art
Inside the Studio Art classrooms of St. Mark’s, students create several informational paintings and apply artistic skills in the context of the natural environment. Through these assignments, the students have an opportunity to research our ecosystems and recognize the unbalance of it. Those paintings not only train the artistic skills of the students but also enhance students’ ability to think critically and to link art into different aspects of their lives. Mrs. Putnam, the teacher of Studio Art classes at St. Mark’s, believes that research is not only crucial in academic classes, but the art itself is a research-based discipline. She also thinks that it is vital to make sure that the students understand the connection between science and art by mentioning that before the invention of cameras, scientists were artists or they hired them on expeditions. Through this, she hopes students can apply their knowledge and skills from classes to apply them to various fields of expertise and the world.
Collaboration with A Scientist
Although Ms. Putnam has done such assignments with students for years, this year was the first year that she found the opportunity for the students to connect with a scientist. The project this year differed from previous years since the students would not only rely on the information on the internet, but would be able to gather first-hand information from an expert who specializes in the field of marine mammals. The one specific species that the Studio I students researched was the critically endangered Mediterranean Monk Seals (Monachus Monachus), and they were free to explore the different aspects of monk seals roles in the ecosystem and threats to their survival. Ms. Putnam and the students collaborated with Dr. Luigi Bundone. He is wholeheartedly dedicated in his work with the Mediterranean monk seals, and he is the Director of Archipelagos- Ambiente e Sviluppo, Italia, a research and conservation organization he founded.
During the planning and research process of the paintings, the students were able to connect and ask questions to Dr. Bundone face to face through Facetime. His help and generosity in sharing his work with the students enabled them to answer questions regarding monk seals which the previous researchers and internet could not resolve. They were also able to see slides of monk seals and learn how he works. Thus, the students each created a painting using the information they found and combinations of images found online.
World Marine Mammal Conference
As mentioned, this year was the first year that Ms. Putnam’s class was able to collaborate with Dr. Bundone. This year was also the first year that Ms. Putnam took all the students’ artwork to the World Marine Mammal Conference and let the works of students make an impact.
World Marine Mammal Conference (WMMC) 2019 was hosted in Barcelona by the Society for Marine Mammalogy (SMM) and the European Cetacean Society (ECS) together with the help of local organizations and the University of Barcelona. The purpose of this conference is for scientists, researchers, teachers, and organizations, to gather and discuss marine science and pressing issues. Ms. Putnam attended the meeting together with Dr. Bundone (left 1) and several other scientists in her group for workshops.
She displayed the students’ paintings with information in the workshop. Scientists who came up with the works were impressed by the depth of the research. They were interested in how the research affected the composition of the works. Also, scientists who specialize in the field of monk seals commented on how accurate the works of the students are. Dr. Bundone even recognized the seal in one of the paintings.
As the scientists are concerned about finding ways to raise awareness of the protection of monk seals, they realized that student artists and professional artists can help them visualize their research and share it with the general public beyond school. St. Mark’s studio class will continue supporting the scientists to translate their specialized vocabulary into art vocabulary and present it to the public. Ms. Putnam said that the students would be collaborating with scientists again next school year, and she will be taking the students’ artworks to the European Cetacean Society Conference in 2021.