Fieldnotes: Where Art Meets Exploration

How do artists observe and document the world around them? Follow along with our expeditions in a new way and join artist Catie Michel as she explains how she constructs a page of field notes while watching Nautilus Live. Good note taking skills help explorers remember what they see and develop future observation of the world. Asking questions and documenting observations are key parts of research, science, and art, and this 7-minute overview featuring our encounter with the magnificent gulper eel can jumpstart your own curiosity and creativity. Draw along and share your field notes with #InspiredByNautilusLive!

If you want to dive deeper into Catie’s process of observational drawing and note-taking, follow along with these one-hour expanded videos as she creates a page of field notes about gulper eels and piglet squids. Watch the expanded video about piglet squids and the original piglet squid highlight video.

Watch the expanded video about gulper eels and the original gulper eel highlight video. For more on the intersections of art and observation, check out this STEAM education activity Art & Observation Field Notebook and more education resources.