Representing the ‘Bushland Campus’: investigating natural history illustration methodology to develop a bushland chorography

Chorography is a historic practice in which specific geographic regions were represented in text-based and illustrated forms. Chorographic works are qualitative and interpretive. They showcase select details of the region, unlike broader geographic and topographic approaches. Historic chorographic works include decorated medieval maps and written itineraries. Contemporary chorographic works embrace a wider range of forms including visual artworks, paintings, prints and computer-based publications such as eBooks. In both a historic and contemporary context, the content and form of each chorography is dependent on the individual chorographer, their interest, purpose and audience. This practice-based research investigates how a chorography of a bushland region can be recorded using a natural history illustration (NHI) methodology. Through a literature review the key criteria of chorography are established and then used to inform the development of my chorographic work. The defining quality of a region is that it must be replicable. Thus, for the purpose of this research, the region selected to be chorographed is the remnant vegetation on the Callaghan Campus of the University of Newcastle, Australia, known as the ‘Bushland Campus’. The bushland on campus comprises four ecological communities. Employing a NHI methodology, the research process involves first identifying and observing fauna and flora in these ecological communities through interdisciplinary fieldwork. Fieldwork is then interpreted through NHI practice methods in a studio-based enquiry and illustrations are produced. Finally, the individual illustrations are contextualised within a chorography of a bushland region in the form of an interactive and responsive webpage.