Jim Bove will share his experiences from his expedition last fall.
Jim Bové, assistant professor in the Department of Art and Languages, will share experiences from his expedition last fall to the Arctic Circle at 11 a.m. April 30 via Zoom.
The Faculty Professional Development Council provided a $7,500 grant for Bove’s project: “Shadows of the Midnight Sun: Traveling to the Arctic Circle in Search of Inspiration.”
Bové was among 29 artists and scientists who sailed together on a three-masted, 190 foot-long tall ship for more than 20 days.
During the expedition, they traveled from the northern-most town in the world, Longyearbyen, and sailed around the archipelago of Svalbard, which is north of Norway
“This amazing landmass stunned us every day with its beauty,” Bove said. “We had traveled to within 10 degrees of the North Pole, a place few get to see. Each day brought us to another wonder. From glaciers to polar bears and the northern lights, the sights were beyond my expectations.”
Without access to a jewelry studio on the ship, Bové used Rhino, a 3D modeling program used in the jewelry and animation industry, to design and print several brooches.
He plans to create a course on Rhino for Cal U students.
“By creating my own artwork using the program and 3D printer, I learned so much more than a person could just by watching videos online,” he said.
Bové said the photographs he took and drawings he made on the trip are a wealth of inspiration.
“Never have I experienced such color and light. The sun would stay just at the horizon line for half of the day, never getting farther than just above the jagged, ice-packed peaks and glaciers,” Bové said.
“This created the longest sunset and sunrise anyone could experience. The colors of the sky took one’s breath away.”
The shipmates inspired and collaborated with each other to enhance the experience.
“Musicians gathered and sang under massive glaciers, their voices echoing back to us, scientists explained the types of whales we were seeing, and I even learned how to tell the age of a reindeer based on the growth and wear pattern of a tooth found on a rocky beach,” he said.
“Expeditions like this are not just about the immediate research; it is the impact over months, even years,” Bové said. “As an artist I will be inspired for the rest of my life and where that takes my artwork is yet to be seen.”