Horizons - Vol 4 Sneak Peek
A photographic series exploring the beauty in soil and comparing this with Regolith on the surface of Mars.
Article by: Maya Arkane
Photography by: Rachel Foster
Soil is one of the most important components on Earth; it provides nutrients to grow the food we eat, purifies our water, and combats flooding. Without healthy, nutrient-dense soil, human life would be extremely difficult.
Rachel Foster, a photographer and wild bird technician based in Vancouver, Canada, wants to showcase the beauty in soil and highlight the intersection between art and science.
Rachel notes: ”I think art is a fantastic way to communicate pressing environmental issues, especially with climate change and our poor treatment of natural spaces.
“However, I feel compelled to create imagery without a sense of urgency. I feel that creating forceful imagery that scares people into inaction towards climate change is detrimental. I hope that people look at my art and feel a bit more inspired by the world around them.
“Art can give scientists a voice because science, with its jargon and rigidity, can be intimidating; art offers accessibility to the potential of data. Data can be as simple as recording what birds visit your garden feeder throughout the year. Data can be beautiful.
“I use lumen printing to document the myriad of hidden processes in the texture of the Earth.”
In 2006 NASA and the University of Arizona launched the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE), sending a camera to orbit Mars and capture detailed images of its surface. Rachel selected images from this project to go alongside her prints “that fit with the theme of soil, renewal, dormancy and transformation”.
Horizon is a photographic series exploring soil texture, water passage, and plant structure. Rachel compares these textures to regolith on Mars.
Regolith is the simplest form of soil. It’s the parent material of soil i.e. rocks and the first stage of soil creation before weathering processes break it down into more complex layers. As Rachel says, “Regolith is a very basic soil horizon, whereas humus - another soil horizon - contains a high amount of organic matter and supports life.”
Another aspect that makes the surface of Mars an interesting comparison to Earth’s is that it used to be a thriving planet.
Mars has lost its atmosphere and most of its complex ecosystem processes. “Mars - comparable to Earth in many ways,” adds Rachel, “ has relictual ancient river systems, lava channels, ice, wind, and clouds” - all indicators of how Mars used to be a thriving planet, potentially even with life on it.
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You can find Rachel on Instagram @_rachelverity, visit her website to see more of her work www.rachelverity.org