Our transdisciplinary project combined visual arts and social sciences in ways that allow for deep reflection on Anthropocene dynamics and that foster emotional engagement of the audience [67], [68]. The art-science collaboration consisted of three steps.

First, we conducted semi-structured interviews with researchers to learn about research activities related to human-environment relations in the Westfjords. We conducted a first set of preparatory interviews online, followed by a second and larger set of in-person interviews during a four-week research stay in the Westfjords. Interviewees included researchers from local organizations, such as the University Centre of the Westfjords, scientists from outside the Westfjords who conduct research in this region, and representatives from the arts and business with links to research. We documented interviews in the form of audio-records or written notes. Drawing on this material as well as on relevant scientific publications from different disciplines, we wrote up short summaries of five major research themes related to human-environment relations in the Westfjords. We asked our interviewees to validate the accurateness of these descriptions.

Second, we—as an illustrator (Elisa Debora Hofmann) and an environmental social scientist (Benjamin Hofmann)—explored the reported research activities on two levels. Through visual arts, we zoomed into local natural objects that represent the research activities described in the interviews. Based on ideas provided by the interviewees, we went out to find the objects in the environment of the Westfjords. Hand-drawn graphite illustrations study these five simple objects in depth. Paying close attention to the structure and materiality of these objects reveals their hidden beauty. By contrast, through social sciences, we zoomed out to generalizable contributions that science can make to resilient human-environment relations. Notably, we put examples from the interviews in relation to theoretical insights on the roles of science in society from scholarly literature in the inter- and transdisciplinary field of sustainability science. The result is a typology of the roles of science in the Anthropocene, visually illustrated with examples from the Westfjords.

Third, we rejoined the two levels from the previous step. We dissected the illustrated objects to create a digitized visual construction kit. This served as basis for the generation of new images, which illustrate the three different roles of science identified through scholarly reflection. This process involved extensive reflections and dialogue about the meaning and essence of each role. Notably, we worked back and forth between the visual composition of the images and the social science reflections. The result is an integrated art-science exploration of research in the Anthropocene, anchored in place-based examples and practices of the Westfjords.

We conducted the first two steps of our project during a fellowship stay in the House of Grímur in Ísafjörður, the capital of the Westfjords, in June and July 2024. We developed the third step after our return to Switzerland from August to December 2024.