PELLSTON, Mich. — “Roadrunners are actually cuckoos.”
Vera Ting knows a lot about the secretive birds which were featured in a colorful tote bag she designed for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
“Cuckoos have two toes facing one way and two facing another way, like an X,” Ting said. “Road runners also have that.”
The illustrator and fine artist from Connecticut has a background in avian biology and ecology and has built a successful career around science illustration and fine art.
“I like to focus on specific flora and fauna, each with its own natural history, and aim for accuracy with what I’m portraying,” Ting said. “I often review research papers and try to correspond with who know the topic when I’m planning my pieces.”
The University of Michigan alumna is a 2024 Artist in Residence at the U-M Biological Station in Pellston from May 28 through June 28.
“By melding together the emotions evoked by the stories of northern Michigan's landscape, I aim to create a cohesive series of mixed-media paintings in watercolor, gouache and acrylics inspired by my time at the University of Michigan Biological Station,” Ting said.
She is familiar with the robust scientific community at the research and teaching campus where laboratories and cabins are tucked in along Douglas Lake to support long-term climate research and education.
Ting previously worked as a field assistant for bird research at the U-M Biological Station, where she contributed to a study on avian brain activity during spring migration. Ting conducted research on the wing morphology of Yellow Warblers as an undergraduate and earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental science in 2022.
She took courses at UMBS in 2019 and 2021 as a student, including Florilegium, which was “eye opening” for Ting because it marked the first time she was able to paint and draw in the field — combining her two passions.
Ting has served as a museum technician at the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, preparing bird skin and skeletons for the ornithology collection as well as preparing and mounting insects for the entomology collection.
In high school she volunteered in the vertebrate zoology department at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History and learned how to create bird study skin and skeleton specimens for the ornithology collection. She has honed this skill over the years and still prepares specimens for collections whenever she has the opportunity.
Most recently, Ting worked as a Bartels Science Illustrator at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Through her artwork, she seeks to delve into the delicate balance between ecological communities and the transient nature of living organisms.
That’s where she created the roadrunner tote, as well as a poster on woodpeckers of the world.
With the UMBS artist residency, she’s coming full circle. Ting will teach drawing workshops, including beginner-level bird drawing and painting, to scientists, students, staff and their families. She’ll also be creating her own art.
“I’m really excited to reconnect with the landscapes and communities that have shaped my artistic and scientific journey,” said Ting. “I was introduced to all the different types of wetlands when I was a student here and that has really inspired me to learn more about the plants and the insects and to create art inspired by them. I’m looking forward to revisiting the sites and finding new locations to explore this summer.”
Ting’s direct experience with the wildlife and natural landscapes of northern Michigan will inform her art this June— “I’d like to experiment with a more stylized approach in my art, focusing less on intricate details,” she said, describing her plans for the work she will create during her residency.
Ting’s workshops are for UMBS students, researchers, teaching faculty, staff and their families. No experience is required. All skill levels in the UMBS community are welcome.
Sketch pads and mixed media artbooks are available for purchase in the UMBS store in the Administrative Building. Watercolors, colored pencils and drawing pencils will be available in Nichols Lab.
Ting’s artist-in-residence workshop schedule includes:
- Sunday June 2, 12:30 p.m. Meet in Nichols Lab. Beginner-friendly bird drawing using the field station’s avian specimen collection. Ting will teach the use of lines and shapes to structure a bird as well as ways to use lines to define and shade a drawing.
- Sunday, June 9, 12:30 p.m. Meet in Nichols Lab. Nature journaling with watercolors. The workshop will begin with an introduction to watercolors. Participants will then explore the outdoors surrounding the field station and capture what they observe in their sketchbooks. It is recommended to bring a mixed media art book.
- Sunday, June 16, 12:30 p.m. Meet in Nichols Lab. Scavenger Hunt. Participants will receive a list of specific flora and fauna to locate and sketch. Participants are encouraged to identify and label the subjects to the best of their ability. Helpful tools for identification are apps like Seek or iNaturalist.
The public is invited to Ting’s lecture from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, June 19, at the U-M Biological Station in Gates Lecture Hall. Her talk is titled “Art and Ecology: The Intersection of Field Exploration and Creative Practice.”
Founded in 1909, the U-M Biological Station is one of the nation’s largest and longest continuously operating field research stations. For 115 years, students, faculty and researchers from around the globe have studied and monitored the impact of environmental changes on northern Michigan ecosystems.
The core mission of the Biological Station is to advance environmental field research, engage students in scientific discovery and provide information needed to understand and sustain ecosystems from local to global scales. In this cross-disciplinary, interactive community, students, faculty and researchers from around the globe come together to learn about and from the natural world and seek solutions to the critical environmental challenges of our time.
