SNEEZE: Artistic Outcomes

“An art-science ACE project to explore the common allergy hay fever, highlighting pollen’s beauty and malevolence.” 

 

 

As the SNEEZE project has progressed a body of art works have emerged that incorporate drawings, installation, film and sound. The final body of work aims to bring art and science in dialogue with each other, presenting the public with an artistic narrative exploring the of behaviour of pollen grains in the air and inside the human body. I have been mindful to explore the aesthetics of the natural world, to visualise the data I have collected and have worked to make the invisible world of pollen visible in a new way.

The pieces provide unique insights into the fascinating microscopic world of pollen and it’s incredible beauty. The main areas of focus for the art pieces has been, the fascinating process of pollen counting; pollen’s malevolent allergenic effects on the human body, and the incredible toughness of the pollen wall. The final works are as follows:

 

 

Presently, parcell’d out – drawing, film and sound installation

When malevolent pollen grains invade the body what happens?

 

By combining an anatomical drawing and visuals of pollen, collected using a scanning electron microscope, with manipulated recordings taken from the voices of sufferers of hay fever, ‘Presently, parcell’d ’ aims to connect viewers visually with the associated allergic response of hay fever. Through installation this piece interprets the behaviours of pollen and the different roles the body has to fulfil to combat the malevolent pollen when it enters and begins to attack.

 

 

Gather’d in countless array

– a microscope slide installation accompanied by the creative film,

‘Pollen trap’

 

Ever wondered how the pollen count is recorded?

 

 

This work is an artistic visualisation of the process of how the palynologists trap and analyse pollen to produce pollen count reports for the public domain. Once trapped, these scientists stain each pollen sample with ‘Fuchsan’ substance to create a vast array of pink slides, with each slide containing unique valuable information about the pollen levels for that day and the types of pollen currently in the air

 

 

‘Gather’d in countless array’ illuminates how pollen samples are collected and analysed to share information that is invaluable to hay fever sufferers, to whom knowledge of the pollen count is vital. Three hundred and sixty five slides – one for each day of the year-  aims to reflect the seasonal pollen calendar, as uncovered by the palynologists,.  Glass painted microscope slides show optical views of pollen grains at the times they are most prevalent throughout the year. The accompanying creative film ‘Pollen trap’, uses visuals of the process of pollen-counting and alien-type sounds of the laboratory to give further visual context for viewers.

 

 

Diamond of the plant world – chalk drawings on four blackboard panels

 

 

 

 

This series of chalk drawing panels share a closer look at the of the protein pollen wall and reveals a host of magnificent micro-architectural structures reminiscent of mountainous landscapes. These ornamental mantles are tough and highly resistant to external forces which make pollen almost indestructible and has resulted in scientists likening pollen to the toughest material known to man, diamond.

 

 

Pollen postcards – an exclusive collection of nine informative & artistic postcards

A series of nine creative postcards were produced  specially to accompany the SNEEZE project and were provided free to the public to share an intriguing insight into the secret, poetic, microscopic world of pollen and it’s allergenic effects on the human body.

 

 

 

 

 

You can follow the Sneeze Project on Instagram @thesneezeproject