Publication Date

5-2024

Description

Driven by overlapping interests in plants, art, and diversity in sex expression, Anna Kell (Department of Art and Art History) and Chris Martine (Department of Biology) developed a course that integrates the perspectives of a visual artist and a botanist. Art & Sex Through the Lens of Botany seeks to impart the importance of making connections across disciplines and the value of visual literacy across academic lines. The course introduces foundational concepts in each field and encourages students to integrate and explore these different systems of knowledge and their intersections. In addition to developing fluencies related to both general botany and studio art, the goal of the course is that students demonstrate a variety of new strengths including a) the ability to recognize, construct, and evaluate connections among different intellectual methods, ways of learning, and bodies of knowledge; b) the ability to identify the various parts of a flower and discuss their significance and role in sexual reproduction in plants; c) increased awareness of visual forms of communication, including artistic expression, data visualization, and observation; and d) a broader understanding of the role of sexuality in the science of biology and in the formation of cultural beliefs and biases.

Journal

Plant Science Bulletin

Volume

70

Issue

1

First Page

73

Last Page

75

Department

Biology

Second Department

Art & Art History

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