Artist Angela Rossen to hold art workshops focusing on biodiversity of Bremer Bay

A travelling WA artist will provide a chance to put Bremer Bay under the microscope during two science-based workshops next week.

Fremantle artist Angela Rossen will host a free paint and sip evening on January 18 at the Bremer Bay Community Hall, focusing on the local marine life found on the shores of Bremer Bay, after an event in Hopetoun on January 17.

She will also host a biodiversity survey on January 19 from 8-11am at Main Beach, where she will show locals how to use their smartphones as microscopes to view the tiny invertebrates living there.

Rossen said the whole community was invited to come along to take a closer look at the creatures living near the shore on their local beach.

“So often you can tell what lives near the shore by looking at what gets washed up, of course,” she said.

“But sometimes it’s even more fun to go for a snorkel.

“I’m going to have a device that turns people’s phones into a times 25 microscope and will be able to look at things that have been plucked from the water up close.”

Rossen is passionate about the intersection of art and science and holds an Honorary Research Associate position at UWA’s School of Biological Sciences, where she also serves as an adjunct lecturer in the university’s Oceans Institute.

She travels around WA holding workshops to educate people about their natural environment and the importance of seagrass.

Rossen was most recently in the Great Southern in May, where she was the artist-in-residence at Denmark’s Arts House during the Nullaki Festival.

Save Our Marine Life will also be at the biodiversity survey to provide an update on the proposed south coast marine park.

SOML WA Ocean & Rivers manager Monique Barker said the marine park, which is proposed to stretch from Bremer Bay to the South Australian border, would work as an “insurance policy”.

“Now, with a marine park proposed for the coastal waters of the region, we have an opportunity to create a well-designed marine park that can provide an insurance policy for the health of our unique marine life into the future while supporting great fishing, tourism and recreation opportunities,” she said.

Bookings for the paint and sip event are essential, visit: https://bit.ly/3W0kFnK.