
‘Entangled Stories’ an Eco-immunology ArtScience project
A chance meeting on the Isle of May between Becker Eco-immunology Branch Lead Professor Kathryn Else and Dr Rowan Bancroft from The University of Manchester, Dr Iris Mair from The University of Edinburgh, and artist Alice Angus resulted in conversations about drawing, research, and field work which led, a year later, to Alice returning to the island as an artist in residence with the team of ecoimmunologists to work on an ArtScience project supported by the BBSRC and BSI entitled ‘Entangled Stories’.
Entangled Stories visual and sensory drawing workshop 2, photo ©Alice Angus
Kathryn said: “The environment impacts the immune system throughout life. We work in the interdisciplinary area of ‘eco-immunology’, bridging the gap between laboratory immunology and the real world by studying the immune system of a wild mouse population on the Isle of May.” A National Nature Reserve, managed by NatureScot staff and volunteers, the Isle of May is an important safe haven for avian and sea life and receives thousands of visitors each year.
The ArtScience project was motivated by a desire amongst the team to build understanding and conversation around how the environment influences the immune system and thus health, and to reveal unseen aspects of ecoimmunological research being done on the Isle of May via the medium of art as a means to increase research transparency.
Concertina Books exploring different kinds of visual and sensory observation, by the Ecoimmunology Team, Entangled Stories photo ©Alice Angus
Alice said: “I followed and drew the team during their fieldwork living and working on the island, in all kinds of weather, as well as sketching the wildlife, landscapes and other people on the island. I led drawing workshops with the researchers, in sun, wind, fog and rain, sharing methods to observe, discover and represent unseen, unexpected and unforeseen details, dynamics and relationships through mark making and the team created a lovely series of concertina books and net of stories for visitors to add to.”
Entangled Stories, Net of Stories, public participation activity, Main Lighthouse, Isle of May photo ©Alice Angus
Historically sketching and drawing had an important place in the sciences as a method of discovery, understanding and communication, for hundreds of years and so Alice was very excited to work with the team of ecoimmunologists to (re)connect their current methods of observation to practices rooted in drawing and fine art.
Entangled Stories, Net of Stories, public participation activity, Main Lighthouse, Isle of May photo ©Alice Angus
Alice said: “Sketching is an excellent tool of discovery and analysis but often drawing is only used to represent the findings of research. My work explores how drawing can be an active part of a research process and a catalyst for new observations, discoveries, discussions and findings. Drawing is both a fast process to capture fleeting moments, a slow process of study that reveals things and an abstract way to explore sensory atmospheres like sound, touch and smell.”
Entangled Stories Chronology 1: fieldwork drawing by Alice Angus
Alice’s process of drawing works as kind of field observation; being in a place listening, observing and participating and it involves patience, time and experimentation. It’s a time-based process that reveals unexpected and unseen things. Alice explains “I draw from life, observing surroundings through sight, sound, smell and touch, often waiting for the right moment, (drawing similarities with scientific observation). Drawing is a powerful way to get to know people, who see me drawing and talk about the drawings and their work and suggest other things or places to draw. In this way I see and hear stories, details, workings, routines and rhythms.”
Entangled Stories Chronology 2: lab work drawing by Alice Angus
Kathryn and the ecoimmunologists found that working with Alice helped foster reflective conversations within the research team around the nature and processes of immunological research being done in the wild and it allowed them to connect with their environment and study system beyond the scientific content of the study. Using observational and sensory drawing as a method of enquiry, observation and analysis gave them, as eco-immunology field researchers, methods to explore, reveal and represent unseen dynamics and relationships.
Entangled Stories exhibition, Main Lighthouse, Isle of May ©Alice Angus
Work from the project pictured above was shown at an exhibit at the historic Main Lighthouse on the Isle of May in September.
Commenting on the impact made by the project Kathryn said: “We have created a lasting ArtScience resource highlighting field researcher realities, and the area of eco-immunology, to immunologists and the wider public.”
This project was developed by Alice Angus in collaboration with Professor Kathryn Else, Dr Iris Mair and Dr Rowan Bancroft. Collaborators included Esha Cheema, Laurie Fleming, Rowanne Fletcher, and Sofia Jansson (Universities of Manchester and Edinburgh) as well as Hayley Bannister and Isabella Allan (NatureScot) on the island. It was supported by the BSI and the BBSRC and on the island by David Steel and NatureScot.
0 Comments