2022 AMI Online Salon
The Residents of Devonian Cleveland
Project Details
- Entrant Name: Alyssa Starrett
- Client: Cleveland Museum of Natural History
- Copyright: Alyssa Starrett, 2022
- Medium/software used: Procreate & Adobe Illustrator
- Final presentation format: Print/Exhibit
- Primary Audience: General
Project Description
“The Residents of Devonian Cleveland” is intended to educate viewers on some of Cleveland, Ohio’s most famous fossil organisms from the Devonian Period. Cleveland is famous for its wide array of placoderm fossil genera and this piece is intended to highlight the diversity and, in some cases, the extraordinary size of some of the inhabitants of the Devonian Cleveland ecosystem. Additionally, it highlights the lifestyle of two of the largest species in the Devonian oceans. This piece visually conveys a large quantity of in an engaging way and is intended to raise interest and awareness in one of the world’s most significant, but lesser known, fossil sites. The intended audience are visitors to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and is meant to increase visitor knowledge of the local fossil record. Each organism was reconstructed based on observation of the fossil remains, analysis of relevant phylogenetic relationships, general fish anatomy, inferred lifestyle, and expert input from CMNH paleontologists. Human size analogs are included in order to help the viewer conceptualize these organisms in relation to themselves. The reconstructions are illustrated in a more illustrative style to create an engaging, updated look that compliments the modern graphic design style guide utilized by the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
