A close up look at part of an oil painting of a purple flower. Part of a stem and some petals can be seen. The background is in earthy neutral tones. The title and authors' names are at the bottom of the image in white text.

Up Close With a Canvas

“…art has a world of her own where science is not so absolute.” J.E.H. MacDonald (circa 1925), as cited in J.E.H. MacDonald Up Close: The Artist’s Materials and Techniques. Yet science does shine, as Kate Helwig and Alison Douglas escort the reader through the many layers that make up a sampling of J.E.H. MacDonald’s iconic …

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The Luminous Sea by Melissa Barbeau

A team of researchers from a nearby university have set up a research station in a fictional outport in Newfoundland, studying the strange emergence of phosphorescent tides. And Vivienne, a young assistant, accidentally captures a creature unknown to science: a kind of fish, both sentient and distinctly female. As the project supervisor and lead researcher attempt to exploit the discovery, the creature begins to waste away, and Vivian must endanger herself to save them both.