Eav Brennan
Naturalist
I make art, tell stories and teach with plants, animals, rocks, fungi and people
I practice creative nature writing through literary comics. My work blends magic realism, folklore and non-fiction with a strong focus on materiality.
Current Project: Anthropocene Naturalist
I am currently exploring ideas around making the curiosity, wonder and whimsy that historically surrounds the naturalist tradition. Working as an environmental educator, I see every day how a single point of connection can help people learn and think about their ecological situation. My work seeks to understand how we can continue such a tradition of observation, mindful existence and care, while righting the colonialist and extractive practices of the past.
Latest blog post
Small beings, small objects and small acts
In the past month or so, I have been making a lot of small, textured objects. Most of these are a mixed medium of paper, wool, fabric, thread and wire in a corked test tube. One was a scroll of the life cycle of a striped marsh frog on an old wooden spool of domestic…
Overlooking Seagrass
Almost a year ago, I went to Watershed Studios in Galway and made a comic about seagrass. This is my comic and my artist’s statement. My years’ long interest in seagrass has only intensified by the privilege of spending weeks swimming off the Blackrock diving tower in Galway city, Ireland. Back home, in my day…
Past Project: Graphic Ecology, 2024
Published in 2024 with Dr Caitlyn Forster, Graphic Ecology is a comic essay on how to tell ecological stories in comic form.
Forever Project: Mending, upcycling and gathering
Crafting with reclaimed wood and fabric is how I ground my practice in community and family. Employing the techniques I learned from my mother and grandmother in sewing and crochet, gathering to communally craft and trade wares are the moments I feel truly rooted in my ecosystem. I use these approaches to foster care and action for environmental justice.
Eav Brennan 