Deep Time

Deep Time, a photo by megan_n_smith_99 on Flickr.

From wikipedia:



"Deep time is the concept of geologic time. The modern philosophical concept was developed in the 18th century by Scottish geologist James Hutton (1726–1797)"

I had a good time with this drawing, parts of which were inspired by Ernst Haeckel's work. . He did many intricate and beautiful drawings of creatures from the sea and the land, the present and the past.

Here I have included living and extinct sea urchins, barnacles, trilobites, and more. Sea urchins and some of their relatives have five fold symmetry, which I knew when I started this drawing. I thought barnacles also shared this trait, but while drawing this I realized that at least some groups of barnacles have six-fold symmetry, which was very exciting. Barnacles are more closely related to crabs and lobsters than they are to sea urchins. And the larval stage of barnacles roam and drift about until they are ready to settle down and attach to a rock or boat or piling.

Deep Time
8x10"
Pen & Ink
Available on Etsy.