A lot of art/science mashups aren’t terribly impressive. They’re often something along the lines of a statue that contains Erlenmeyer flasks, or a fractal picture, or a melody-free song called Quantum Uncertainty.
The UNH Center for Acoustics Research and Education is trying something more extensive, as UNH News reports:
The topic of ocean acoustics — the use of sounds under the sea to study marine life and the environment — is sometimes difficult to visualize because you can’t see sound the way you can see a whale.
Center director Jennifer Miksis-Olds collaborated with artist Lindsay Olson from Columbia College Chicago on an ocean-based acoustics research cruise last year, which resulted in Olson creating textile art that visually documents the underwater soundscape of sea life in the Atlantic Ocean. Her embroidered silk panels illustrate the daily migration of zooplankton, the sound-enhancing layer in the ocean, phytoplankton, and the dramatic vocalizations of marine life gathered by hydrophones (a type of underwater microphone).
There will be three opportunities for the public to meet the artist and view her textile art on UNH’s Durham campus:
A seminar at the UNH Museum of Art titled, “Sounds of the Sea: The Art and Science of Ocean Acoustics,” will take place on Oct. 16 from 12-1 p.m. in room 218 of the Paul Creative Arts Center on campus.
Meet the artist on Oct. 17 at 9 a.m. in 301 Morse Hall.
Olson will be at UNH Ocean Discovery Day on Saturday, Oct. 19 to showcase her art. Stop by the Chase Ocean Engineering Lab between 10 a.m.– 12 p.m. to view the textiles and chat with her.
These events are free and open to the public.
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