Are you on the fence about entering the Images of Research Competition and Exhibition this year? We caught up with former IOR semifinalists to find out about their past experience with IOR and what happened afterwards. Please meet Jonathan Green!
What did you learn about yourself or your research while you created your IOR image?
Looking upon all the research I had done – the books, the journals, articles, photos, conversations – how do you encapsulate all this? IOR led me to scrape away to the essential thoughts, impulses I have for my research.
How did IOR boost your professional and academic skills?
IOR boosted my communications skills through having to speak to a diverse and interesting group of people outside of my field. Every time you speak to the public can be an educational opportunity. To me it came down to sharpening and editing the ‘elevator pitch’.
What is your advice to researchers who are considering entering the competition in 2021?
Try to think back to the spark that got you started in your research, that moment of curiosity, and come up with the image that would do that to you now, or still does it for you.
What’s new for you and your research?
I have three major presentations of my work coming up in the next year – two solo exhibitions and a group exhibit, The Bonavista Biennale – so creating and preparing for them. This new work is focusing on the element of wildfire in the wilderness along with attention on the impact of climate change. This will be told through the use of narratives in a sort of travelogue. The imagery is all from my own research down the Yukon River as well as my brother’s experience as a wildfire fighter.
Upon graduating in 2016, I canoed down the Yukon River as part of an artist residency, then moved and lived for 3 years in Alaska. Last year I moved back to Canada, driving back down in the dead of winter. After that it was fairly quiet for obvious reasons, but I am looking forward to some more wilderness exploration in the future.
Is there anything else you’d like to mention regarding your research/work journey since IOR?
I know it may sound cliche, but be open to change and opportunity. My journey has not been a clear straight path. It can lead to so many rich experiences.
You can view more of Jonathan’s work at his website: www.jonathansgreen.com.
Graduate students interested in the fully virtual 2021 Images of Research Competition can find more information on the Images of Research webpage. If you’re not sure where to begin, we have a couple of virtual workshops where you can ask questions and get the low down on how to prepare your entry.
