November 29, 2017, by Justine Webb

The next Natural History seminar features Dr. Sara Robinson presenting “Spalted Wood: From ancient art to modern science” on Thursday December 7th at 7:30pm at UAS room 229.

Wood colored by fungi (spalted wood) has a deep history in Europe in intarsia and marquetry woodworks. This medium is currently experiencing a resurgence in popularity in the US currently, as woodturning artists reinterpret this unique material for a new art form. This talk will given overview of the history of spalted wood and its use from carefully guarded medieval guild secret to contemporary art found in museums. Dr. Robinson will share some of the surprising uses of spalted wood being developed in part through her lab at Oregon State, including applications as biomarkers, UV-resistant paint, and solar cells.

Dr. Robinson is assistant professor of Anatomy of Renewable Materials (RM) within the Wood Science & Engineering (WS&E) department at Oregon State University.

The Natural History seminar series is supported by a grant from the Sitka Permanent Charitable Trust to the Sitka Sound Science Center and by University of Alaska Southeast and the National Park Service.
If you have any questions please contact Kitty LaBounty at 747-9432 or kllabounty@alaska.edu