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A Unique Perspective: How an Art-Science Love Affair Inspires Artist Jill Pelto
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Over the past decade, climate storytelling has become an increasingly prominent part of our daily lives.
From dedicated climate reporters at national and international outlets to science communicators finding ever more compelling ways to translate complex topics into relatable, accessible information, climate change messaging is everywhere. Presented in many digestible formats, it’s become inspiring to see how many talented people are turning their hand to the storytelling aspect of the issue.
One of those people is Jill Pelto, an artist originally from Massachusetts, U.S., whose unique passion for both science and the arts (and her double major in both from the University of Maine) has allowed her perspective to bring a whole new dimension to science communication. Already a noteworthy name in this space at just 32, her work has been featured on the cover of TIME, at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, and as a cover for the North Cascade Conservation Council journal.
“The first time I clicked with the idea of making data art was as I was nearing the end of my undergrad studies,” Jill explains.
“I had come back from a science field season working on glaciers in Washington State in 2015 and this was the first time I had really seen the effects of climate change really combining all at once. It was super powerful and emotional to witness.
“When I went back to a different part of the country where these things weren’t happening - I felt compelled to tell the story.”
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Much of Jill’s inspiration is rooted in her family’s connection to the outdoors, particularly the work of her father, Mauri Pelto, a glaciologist who has been studying climate change since the 1980s.
Supported by 11th Hour Racing, Jill is part of an ever-growing number of science communicators challenging the status quo and finding new and different ways to connect with audiences from all backgrounds and ages.
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Her work is not only inspiring but necessary, and we’re delighted to be able to share it with a wider audience. Long may this important work continue.
Keep reading to uncover just a small selection of some of Jill’s work.
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TIME Artwork ‘Currents’
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Jill: I created a custom painting for the July 2020 Climate issue of TIME.
2020 was a tumultuous year but underlying currents of positive action are still surfacing rapidly. Currents depicts a critical grouping of global climate data dictating our present and future actions. The reality of this data may be frightening, but there are messages of hope within.
The title Currents refers to time and change. The currents in our world's oceans are literally shifting as our climate changes. But so too is the collective action we are taking. The data shows this passage of time and why we need to act now for ourselves and our world.
Decrease in Glacier Mass Balance
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Jill: Decrease in Glacier Mass Balance is my very first data art painting, I came up with the idea in response to witnessing the effects of climate change in this landscape first hand and wanting to communicate the amount of change through my art. The painting incorporates measurements from 1980-2014 of the average mass balance for a group of North Cascade, WA glaciers. Mass balance is the annual budget for the glaciers: total snow accumulation minus total snow ablation. Not only are mass balances consistently negative, they are also continually decreasing.
40 Years in the North Cascades
Jill: As part of my work with Protect Our Winters, I created 40 Years in the North Cascades. This painting is an emotional piece for me, it represents the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project reaching 40 years, and the resulting data of glacier decline. My dad founded and has run this project every year since. The summer of 2025 will be his 42nd field season and my 17th. The top surface of the mountain glacier is a line graph that depicts the mass balance of North Cascade glaciers in Washington state from 1984-2023, 40 years of data. I hope the beauty of this landscape manages to convey a fraction of what I feel for it.
Volcanoes and Ocean
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Jill: I was lucky enough to be an artist at sea through a program with the Schmidt Ocean Institute, where you live and work on a research boat. I was off the coast of southern Chile for about three weeks with a team of around 25 scientists - people who study volcanoes, marine biology, and sediments. The big story was how these volcanoes were affecting changes to the ocean bottom. My role was to create a series of four paintings that told the story of the research and why it mattered. It was a really unique and big learning experience for me - getting to be in that immersive environment.
Jill Pelto
"The first time I clicked with the idea of making data art was as I was nearing the end of my undergrad studies."
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Seabirds of Seal Island
Jill: The focus of this painting is Seal Island, off the coast of Rockland in Maine. Restoration work around seabirds began here in 1984, and this piece highlights three of the species: Atlantic Puffins, Arctic Terns, and Common Terns.
Three line graphs show pairs of these birds from 1999-2022. Over this time period, Puffins (graph on the left side), had begun to recover, but in more recent years, chicks are struggling to survive the nesting season. Several big factors are rising water temperatures and the availability of food due to overfishing in the Gulf of Maine.
Arctic Terns (graph on the bottom right), have also been declining, with a variable population over the last two decades. One reason for this is climate change in Antarctica, where they winter for five months.
The third species, Common Tern (graph on the top right), is a more successful story. On Seal Island, their population was higher a decade ago, but their population in the state has increased over the last 30 years from just over 2,000 birds to almost 11,000.
If you would like to follow Jill, check out her website, instagram and shop.
Hero image credit: Claire Giordano
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