- Title
- More than coal: exploring natural history illustration practice to fuel endemophilia; an art-based study in the Lower Hunter Valley
- Creator
- Greive, Bronwyn
- Relation
- University of Newcastle Research Higher Degree Thesis
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2024
- Description
- Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Description
- Environmental issues are prevalent, with climate change and increasing natural disasters. While research has shown that art can influence environmental behaviour, it has not specifically examined if Natural History Illustration (NHI) practice can contribute to our relationship with the environment. NHI practice accurately interprets the natural world using fieldwork (with written and visually documented observations), research, and studio practice, all contributing knowledge communicated through the final artworks. It is interdisciplinary and often considered specialised. Using Art-based Research, this project examines two questions. Firstly, can NHI practice help foster endemophilia (i.e., the love of local and regional environmental aspects by people of the area)? Secondly, if so, how can I use NHI practice to document some of the significant natural history of this area, the Lower Hunter Valley, to help fuel further endemophilia in my own work and for others? Before answering these questions, this study reviews evidence of the importance of the human-nature relationship and the long connection between art and nature. Then each question was addressed. The first by collecting data from experiments with others (two case studies) in schools through: documenting student’s relationships with a local area of environmental significance; co-creating murals on this area using NHI practice; recording any shifts in their relationship to the area after creating; gathering student and researcher reflections on the experience; and including researcher observations. The second question was addressed by choosing 24 sites in the Lower Hunter Valley then, using NHI practice, I the researcher created artworks for each one. As this area has the world’s largest coal-exporting port, research and artworks were juxtaposed against this dominant coal story, and compiled in a final creative piece, a book titled: More than Coal: Exploring Natural History of the Lower Hunter Valley and Creative Ways to Love it. This book, for the general community, is designed to continue to fuel endemophilia and democratise NHI practice, encouraging people to visit the sites, and giving them simple exercises so they too can creatively engage with these environments. This research demonstrates through working with untrained participants, that Natural History Illustration practice can affect attitudes toward local environments.
- Subject
- art-based research; endemophilia; natural History Illustration; natural history; Hunter Valley; visual art
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1508416
- Identifier
- uon:56124
- Rights
- The creative work associated with this thesis is under embargo and will be released 06.06.2025, Copyright 2024 Bronwyn Greive
- Language
- eng
- Full Text
- Hits: 650
- Visitors: 677
- Downloads: 46
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT01 | Thesis | 35 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download | ||
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT02 | Abstract | 357 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |