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Unveiling the Inner Artist: InterArts Cabinet of Curiosity

Emma Perry

Emma Perry is a visual artist. Find some of her creative work from the fall 2020 semester in the gallery above.

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Nautilus Shell
By Emma Perry
The object that I think is worthy to be in our Cabinet of Wonders is the single nautilus shell located in the Wadsworth Museum Cabinet. It is next to the flashier nautilus shell sculpture of a man riding a snail, but I was more drawn to the natural, lonely nautilus shell. Nautilus shells have historical significance for me personally, as my mom thought they were amazing when I was younger and constantly had paintings of them around the house, and to this day wears multiple pairs of nautilus shell earrings. There are many different aspects of the nautilus shell that are considered unique and special, but the thing that my mom always loved the most was the way they grew. It’s described perfectly in an article by Ask Nature:

“When it gets too large for its existing space, the...nautilus adds on to the open end of its shell, expanding the diameter in a spiral configuration. And, in a remarkable and timely example of repurposing, it does not abandon its old space. Rather, it closes it off with a wall, creating a chamber that it uses to help stay buoyant as its body gets heavier.”

In its lifetime, a nautilus shell could grow to have 30 chambers. My mom always thought that these shells were a beautiful example of perseverance in nature. She loved that they grew and “kept themselves afloat” just like humans have to do when life gets difficult. I used to get a little sick of hearing about them, just like any kid who thinks they’re too cool for their parents, but now that I’m older, I’m loath to admit that the love and near obsession has been passed on to me.
The more you look into Nautilus shells, the more interesting their story gets. I am interested in mathematics but not in the way that makes me enjoy algebra or calculus. I like the type of mathematics that explains nature and space and human anatomy. As a result of this interest, when I was younger, I went on a binge reading expedition to become an expert of sorts on the Fibonacci Sequence. This sequence, developed by Leonardo of Pisa, helps to explain how “logarithmic spirals” appear in Nature. The sequence goes something like this:
It begins at zero, and continues on: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987.

Each number is the sum of the two previous numbers, and it leads to the logarithmic spiral. This image illustrates how perfectly the nautilus shell exemplifies this.

This sequence also helps explain the growth of sunflower seeds and galaxies.

I love how the human race experiences such wonderment towards nature and how desperately and precisely they try to explain it. The way that the sequence works is that the squares that make up the space of the rectangle and fit perfectly together in the spiral. This works because The squares fit together perfectly because the ratio between the numbers in the Fibonacci sequence is very close to the golden ratio [1], which is approximately 1.618034. The larger the numbers in the Fibonacci sequence, the closer the ratio is to the golden ratio. This helps explain why galaxies work together even though they’re a miraculous mix of random elements in the universe.

Even though that might sound like a bunch of math mumbo-jumbo, it’s such a comfort to me in a weird, roundabout way. Not only do these nautilus shells remind me of my childhood, growing up in my seaside town, but it also settles the innermost part of me that feels untethered. In no way does the Fibonacci Sequence provide a meaning to life, but it’s a comfort to know that our galaxy was formed in such a precise manner, and that the elements that created humans exploded and reformed in such a way that we all ended up here. I don’t subscribe to any specific religion, and I purposely don’t think about what happens to us after death, but something about this sequence and how it appears in nature makes me feel like human life isn’t an accident, and that there’s something to contribute to this bizarre planet.
History Always Repeats Itself
By Emma Perry
Above are photographs/scans of Trinity College Tripod articles and pictures of the College and its inhabitants during the time of the Influenza Pandemic of 1918. While exploring the extents of the Watkinson Library online, I was especially drawn to the things that focus on Trinity College itself. I focused on these exhibits or objects because it felt right as the library is so carefully curated by people here at Trinity, and because during a normal year I could enter it and be surrounded by pieces of history. Due to how tied the Watkinson is to Trinity, I wanted to choose an object/exhibit to explore that specifically mentioned or expanded on a time in our College’s past. While searching, I came across a whole exhibit-cited below- dedicated to the Pandemic of 1918. For a moment I considered exiting the page completely, because in many ways I think we have all seen enough content dedicated to the current global pandemic.

However, before exiting the page, I saw that they had Tripod Excerpts. As much as I didn’t want to think about ANOTHER pandemic, I was too intrigued by the photos of the 20th century newspaper articles.

After scrolling through each section of the exhibit, I saw not only photos and preserved Tripod articles, I also saw “A Concise History of Trinity College and the 1918 Influenza” By Brendan W. Clark ’21, History Department. In this short explanation of how different areas of the school reacted to the pandemic, Clark described an eerily similar situation for the students. Drinking fountains that were no longer available, a ban on leaving campus, and even a reported increase in library attendance by students who wanted a place to go during quarantine.

All this information actually ended up comforting me a little bit, as the similarities between then and now show how it's possible to rebuild and move on after such a horrific and life altering situation such as a pandemic. It was morbidly amusing to read reports about frustrated and stir crazy students feeling many of the same emotions as me and my fellow peers are feeling now. While looking into all this, I had the idea to print pictures of the Tripod Articles and the photos and make a collage. I had many ideas as to what to make and whether or not to make it representational, including a tree, or just a filling of the pages with cut outs, but I decided not to plan too much. I thought maybe in the spirit of how unpredictable life can be, I would instead just make something for once without thinking too hard about planning it out. My end result is shown below. It was cathartic for me to make. I made it in my sketch book because of the quality of the paper but also because I like presenting it as a book that you have to open because it signifies the research that led to the inspiration.

Citations
Obituaries in the Tripod and the Bulletin · Trinity College and the Influenza Pandemic of 1918 · Watkinson Library - Virtual Museum. https://watkinsonlibrary.omeka.net/exhibits/show/trinity-college-and-the-influe/obituaries-in-the-tripod-and-t. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.
Letter to Marley
By Emma Perry
Hi Marley! I drew this guitar using my favorite and super overpriced drawing pencil. I have never drawn a guitar full out like this, which is shocking because I play (badly) the guitar a bit as well, and love music. I know “playing guitar” isn’t your only personality trait but it’s something I find super cool about you, so it seemed like it fit. I have always admired your attitude and how you seem to make any situation you end up in more fun :)

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