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Exhibition of a Pool for Life, part of the project Jubilee Pool Stories. Children's work and their dreams for the future were exhibited at the second Greenwich Maritime Centre (GMC) international conference on the theme 'Society and the Sea' September 2018. Photograph Andy Hughes.
Creative data mapper
Arts-led action researcher
Interdisciplinary designer with social intent
Welcome to Ecogeographer,
And find out how innovative and collaborative art and design can influence and promote sustainability.
In my own practice and through participatory, art-led workshops, I create work that reveals and reinforces a community’s connection to their landscape. Engaging people in the creative process allows data to be ‘mapped’ visually and presented as drawings, artwork, three-dimensional models, video, and illustrated publications. The process of co-creation encourages reflection about the future of a landscape, and the resulting data can be used in dialogue with stakeholders to help build resilience to change. My clients range from local schools and community groups to, universities, environmental orgnisations, and NGOs.
Ecogeographer is run by me, Dominica (Dom) Willliamson, an artist and designer who draws inspiration from landscape.
Viewshed analysis of Giant's Quoit project - what could neolithic people see - could they see the sea from the Giant's Quoit? Screen grab taken from www.thegiantoutdoors.com. Analysis: Caradoc Peters and Jan Leslie
New research published
Following a project to restore a Neolithic quoit in Cornwall, a group of us were keen to extend our local knowledge by exploring nearby Fenton-la, a ruined early medieval chapel. Aided by oral history exchange, we organised participatory walks – chosen jointly after democratic discussion – with the aim of reclaiming lost trails and forgotten connections to these two sites. Through the process of mapmaking and re-walking the land, we began to discover, for example, why paths had fallen into disuse and why it was important for local heritage. The project team has also adopted the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals to help gain funding. You can read about our work in a new book called Pathways: Exploring the Routes of a Movement Heritage.
Are you a landowner or land manager?
In order to apply successfully for the new environmental land management funding schemes applicants will need to show how people value a landscape and the changes made to it. I am co-developing a new service that can provide data about how people value the changes made by the projects that are funded. Do you want to take part in a prototype?
Friends of the Towans Art Club session 'Botanical Art for Families'. Funded by Dynamic Dunescapes. Pollinator pack - traits including tongues interactive exercise, created by Dominica Williamson. Photograph: Sophie Oudeboon.
The Big Draw and a new art club
I am part of art workshops run by Friends Of The Towans Art Club and supported by Dynamic Dunescapes and Cornwall Wildlife Trust.
Through Botanical workshops, participants have learnt about unique and sometimes rare plants that they wouldn’t necessarily notice, especially in some recently scraped damper areas of the dune system. By first using hand lenses and making time to really ‘see’, then by drawing and painting, the wonders of the tiny world of plants were explored!
These workshops target science and art in a fun and relaxed way, with the aim of enabling everyone to become inspired by the mystery of this little known corner of the dunes as well as the art of painting plants. No experience is required, just the thirst for listening, looking, drawing and painting.
I found the combination of the science and art fascinating; Andy Nelson the conservationist talked about the habitat of some of the plants we were to draw and also the way the site is managed: Dominica Williamson our artist, gave us insight into the botanical process and a lot of guidance on how draw and paint the plants; a very enjoyable and inspiring day. Participant, Anne Schneider
Friends Of The Towans Art Club held A Big Dune Draw day, which they would like to make an annual event.
What people are saying about this co-creation...
I thoroughly enjoyed working with Dom on the Coral Communities project. She brought an energy and dynamism to the project that was inspiring to the rest of the team. Dom has a very natural and unassuming way of interacting with the people around her, including the project team and the communities we engaged with. She encouraged us all to try new things, express ourselves in different ways and demonstrated to us the value of doing so. We ended up with richer and much more varied project outputs than we would have had without her.
I have worked with Dominica on a number of projects involving a range of tasks and audiences. For Devon County Council's 'Right Place Right Tree Guidance' she produced superb illustrations which could be combined to create stylish infographics which were both clear and imaginative. For the 'Wales on Rails' heritage interpretation she did an outstanding job of sourcing great images of stations and sites including from online resources and contemporary photographers. Dominica is an absolute pleasure to work with. She listens carefully to understand the exact requirements, makes informed and thoughtful contributions to discussions, and produces excellent outputs. She also meets deadlines of both time and budget.
The workshops were all very engaging. The children could access the workshops no matter their age or ability. Each workshop was different, but were all very well planned and well thought out. The workshops allowed the children to have freedom and be creative which helped keep them engaged. The children listened and participated in discussions the whole session, which showed their engagement. They were very enthusiastic about wanting to find out more, and were confident in asking questions to support this