Paintings unearth essence of geoscience

with geo-artist Eirini Poulaki

Geology is a very visual subject, as a geologist’s eye can classify rocks and unearth their million-year histories based on intricate details. While Eirini Poulaki actively pursues a geoscience PhD, she simultaneously creates geo-art. Many of her paintings are based on what is observed under the microscope in rock thin sections - where mosaics of minerals light up the view.

Different types of rocks have their own distinct group of minerals to be found, which can therefore be used as indicators of different rock types - such as the garnet mica schist seen to the right. Context is important too, Eirini shows rock outcrops in their surrounding landscape as well, presenting not only mineralogy and petrography on the micro-scale, but structural geology and the environment on the meso-scale.

Above: Garnet mica schist from Sikinos (painting 2). © Eirini Poulaki. All rights reserved.

Left: Meteora landscape painting (painting 5). © Eirini Poulaki. All rights reserved.

Q & A - Eirini Poulaki

What inspired you to study geology and create art as well?

Please tell us about your PhD topic and how your studies are going at Jackson School of Geosciences.

My PhD research combines geochronology, metamorphic petrology, and structural geology to investigate subduction zone processes from exhumed rocks in Spain and Greece. With various analyses of these rocks we can gain insights into their journey from deposition to subduction down to 60-70 km depth and finally their exhumation back to the surface. I feel very fortunate that every year I get to do field work, collect my own samples, and then head back to Austin to conduct laboratory work.

A significant part of my research is placing age constraints on the rocks by analyzing the concentration of radiogenic isotopes in various minerals (zircon, apatite etc). My work has shown how and when rocks are deformed at various stages as they are subducted deep into the earth, something that cannot be actively imaged or otherwise detected. It is always fascinating to me how these tiny minerals can give us so much information about the large tectonic picture and help us understand how our planet has evolved through time but also the processes taking place today and the implications they have for geohazards and shaping our environment.

In addition, Jackson School of Geosciences has a wonderful community and outside of research there are many other activities to get involved in. I enjoy participating in outreach events, science communication workshops, and conferences to maintain an exciting schedule.

Of course, due to COVID-19, things have changed a lot here but hopefully things will turn back to some normality during the fall semester. I grew up in Greece which has fascinating geology with earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountains next to the ocean and among other geologic phenomena that intrigued me. I did not know that I could study all these complex systems, but I was curious and wanted to understand them. A huge moment that solidified my love for geology was when I studied Andros Island– the island that my family is from – for my undergraduate thesis (Painting 1). The blue and green rocks and complicated geology were both inspiring and challenging to try and understand how these rocks were formed. By examining micro and meso structures I set relative timing constraints on the history of the rocks that were subducted down to 60km depth and then exhumed back to the surface.

Growing up, I always loved traveling to different destinations in Europe with my family. My dad loves the outdoors which enhanced my love for geology and mom is passionate about art and photography; hence we were always visiting museums and art galleries. I have always enjoyed art and creating it in different ways, including drawing, making jewelry, and other crafts. However, I did not start painting until I was in graduate school. I got into painting because it was a daily activity to look forward to, where I could think creatively and look at geology

Right: Quartz mica garnet schist thin sections from S. Spain (painting 3). © Eirini Poulaki. All rights reserved.

from a new perspective while escaping from the everyday monotony. Painting reminds me to focus on the importance of details in observation.

What aspects of mineralogy do you enjoy representing in your thin section paintings?

Some of the minerals that I look at for my research are microscopic. In order to identify these minerals and understand their structures, I need to look at them under a microscope. This process involves creating a thin section, which is a thin slice of the rock (about the width of a hair). Looking at the thin section through a microscope allows me to observe all the minerals and the structures in the rock. For each thin section painting, I try to capture different aspects depending on the focus of my study and what is particularly interesting in each case. The inspiration from my first thin section painting came while I was working on a paper for the first chapter of my PhD. This painting (2) shows how the mineral garnet breaks down during metamorphism. In this study, we show that garnets are breaking down due to fluids generated by the dehydration of sediments, which results in the generation of zirconium and crystallization of zircon overgrowths. Painting 3 was just a fun approach to illustrate this beautiful garnet mica schist from Spain.

Above: Quartz structures on quartz mica schists thin sections from S.Spain (painting 4). © Eirini Poulaki. All rights reserved.

Left: Light house on Andros, with rocks exposed (painting 1). © Eirini Poulaki. All rights reserved.

In my recent thin section paintings (painting 4), I tried to illustrate the structures observed in quartz crystals. Quartz and feldspar are two common minerals and can show us the temperatures that the rocks with these minerals have experienced in the past. These thin sections are from rocks in Southern Spain that I use for my PhD research and have experienced high temperature metamorphism due to subduction and exhumation.

We can see you create other forms of geo-inspired art too, such as landscape paintings. Are these influenced by field work or other aspects of geology?

Landscape paintings make me think about the ways different aspects of geology are reflected in natural settings and they are mostly inspired by the environment and places I have visited. People might not know how geology impacts everything and carves our world and this is a big challenge for me; I want to express science in a clear and simple manner that can be easily understood by people without a background in the geosciences. Painting 4 is of Meteora, Greece, an area mostly known for the Orthodox monasteries built on top of the rock pillars, and people visit them for religious purposes.

However, I believe the spectacular geology at this site is a major contributing factor to the natural beauty, which is mainly comprised by conglomeratic alluvial fans that were later uplifted, faulted, and eroded into pillars. My Andros painting is especially emotional for me since my family is from there and it is where my love for geology began. It shows a lighthouse built in 1897 on top of beautiful blueschist and greenschist rocks related to subduction metamorphism. In the local village, you can find incredible cobbles with folds and blueschist boudins that were picked without thought and used to build fences and other structures.

Although Greek people care deeply about the environment and history, they often overlook the geologic aspects of nature beneath their feet. I hope with my research and art that I can convey this connection and create greater awareness and gratitude for the geosciences.

Final thoughts

Eirini has shared paintings inspired by thin section views of rocks under the microscope, with examples of the garnet mica schist and quartz mica schists. With her geo-art, she captures different aspects of the rocks studied, with a focus on mineral structures which can indicate to geoscientists the temperatures the rocks experienced in the past, particularly when they were buried at great depth. Being immersed in geoscience as a PhD candidate, she uses the paint brush to artistically share the geological world around, not only on the microscale, but the meso-scale, as seen in the examples of her landscape paintings, where geological outcrops are exposed in the context of the environment.

Bio

Eirini Poulaki is a PhD candidate at the University of Texas at Austin. Having grown up in Athens, Greece, Eirini completed a B.S in Geology from the University of Athens in 2015, having studied the evolution of subduction zone metamorphism using microstructural analyses. Eirini finished her MS in geosciences in UT Austin in 2018. Her current PhD research investigates the evolution of Mediterranean-style subduction zones by analyzing the exhumed geologic record of subduction complexes.

Links

Website: http://eirini-poulaki.squarespace.com/

Twitter: @Eirini_Poulaki

Email: eirini_poulaki@utexas.edu