“Creating specific and relatable images can better reach some people.”
Jill Pelto, 27, is an artist and scientist living outside Portland, Maine, whose work explores the effects of climate change. Growing up, she had the opportunity to study climate change firsthand while accompanying her father, a professor of environmental science at Nicholls College, on research trips to the North Cascades every year since she was 16.
Using watercolors to present scientific data in striking, narratively compelling compositions, Pelto’s art has been featured in Smithsonian Magazine, PBS NewsHour, and National Geographic. Most recently, her work appeared on the cover of “One Last Chance,” TIME Magazine’s special July 2020 issue on climate change.
I spoke with Pelto over the phone recently about her background and how art can provide in-roads into science and activism. The interview below has been edited and condensed for clarity.