Mary Yacoob, UCL Centre for Integrative Anatomy’s Artist-in-Residence, has made a series of drawings inspired by her dialogues at the Centre with researchers from various fields. Speculative illustrations of sea creatures are rendered in fine white lines on deep blue backgrounds that are reminiscent of both technical blueprints and oceanic depths.
Mary has had conversations with Dr Neelima Sharma, who researches the effects of mechanics on the morphology, control and development of musculoskeletal systems in animals. Neelima is involved in research into evolutionary morphology and biomechanics, which is the study of how organic forms, structures and function evolve over time.
When trying to fill gaps in our knowledge in these areas, scientists may try to reconstruct the appearance and function of extinct fish by studying their fossilized teeth or bones.
Drawing plays an important role in these academic reconstructions. Mary reconsiders linear scientific drawings through imaginary lenses.
For example, Mary was inspired by drawings of fish in a phylogenetic tree diagram in one of Neelima’s co-authored papers:
In Mary’s iterations, hagfish and lamprey are bumped up the vertebrate evolutionary tree through their fictional development of synovial joints.
In Mary’s iterations, hagfish and lamprey are bumped up the vertebrate evolutionary tree through their fictional development of synovial joints. In making the drawings, Mary was considering how we gather knowledge, speculate or imagine, and what kind of connections can be constructed between these different practices through art. [The image above is a drawing by Mary inspired by research involving skate.]
Other drawings are inspired by Mary’s dialogues with Dr Sara Abad Guaman about Sara’s work on bio-inspired robots. These robots can be used to meet challenges related to healthcare, life on land, life below water, and climate action. These conversations led to fantastical drawings, which merge natural and artificial structures.
In one drawing, an anatomical image of the Electric Ray Torpedo’s internal electric organs are expressed as symbols normally used to represent circuit boards. Another drawing [shown left] is inspired by the anatomy of a Four-Eyed Spookfish, which has two-part eyes comprising both conventional lenses and mirrors made of reflective crystals that focus light on the retina. Mary’s imaginary creature is rendered in the form of diagrams of crystals and ray optics.
These drawings reflect an era in which scientific, artistic and environmental relationships between humans, nature and technology are entangled in increasingly complex ways.
These drawings reflect an era in which scientific, artistic and environmental relationships between humans, nature and technology are entangled in increasingly complex ways.
Mary Yacoob is an artist based in London. Drawing is central to her practice. Her chosen media include ink on paper, print making, wall drawings, large scale vinyl artworks, light boxes and video.
Mary appropriates the visual languages of architectural plans, cartography, electrical and engineering schematics, alphabetical systems, musical notation and - more recently - biological research illustrations. She researches primary visual source material and then re-deploys and transfigures them. Mary is based at the UCL Slade School of Fine Art, where she is currently engaged in working for her PhD. You can also follow her on Instagram. [The title picture is part of an image inspired by hagfish resulting from conversations with Neelima Sharma].