Alexis Fenn Wins Science in Studio Award
February 05, 2018
Congratulations to Alexis Fenn BFA Illustration '19 on winning the 2017/18 Science in Studio Award. Alexis' application was selected among a pool of exceptional candidates by a juried panel of NOAA scientists and PNCA faculty.
The Science in Studio Award represents a collaboration between NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region and PNCA to engage artistic practices and scientific understanding in addressing the pressing social and ecological concerns we face as a society. This award is part of the largerArt+Science Initiative programming.
Each year, the Science in Studio awardees work closely with NOAA staff and scientists to address a specific concern around the aquatic resources and landscape use in our shared environment. Students collaborate closely with PNCA faculty and NOAA staff and scientists to research and make work in response to a pressing ecological theme. The Science in Studio Award awards $1000 to each individual student as well as an additional materials costs (up to $500) to successful applicants.
This year, Alexis will address the theme “U.S Seafood Forever and For Everyone” and work with scientists to develop a campaign to engage the public in understanding the role of fisheries practices and what will need to be done to feed a growing population and sustain coastal and tribal communities.
Past Science in Studio projects have addressed Nearshore Habitat of juvenile salmon (2013/14); Watershed Toxics (2014/15) and the interaction of Whales and Humans (2015/16) and the hidden culture of California salmon (2016/17).
More about Alexis:
Born and raised in the suburbs of Portland, Alexis Fenn’s time spent hiking in the Columbia Gorge and visiting the Oregon coast developed into a deep love and appreciation of the Pacific Northwest. Along with growing up with childhood heroes like Steve Irwin and Caesar Milan, and possessing a particular fondness for informational textbooks about animals, Alexis was impassioned from a young age to educate and excite others about science and nature, and translates this into her art today. Majoring in Illustration with a minor in Ecology, Alexis frequently visits the Oregon Zoo to do research for projects, and this largely informs her sketching practice. Using analog pencil and painting combined with digital media when executing a piece, she blends realism in the anatomy of creatures and humans with sharp exaggerated linework.