An Artist’s Perspective on the Amundsen: Audrey Hurd

Audrey Hurd is an artist and administrator from Perth, Ontario. She currently lives in Kinngait, Nunavut, where she serves as the Artistic Director of Kinngait Studio. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design University in Halifax, and a Master of Arts from the University of Bergen – Academy of Fine Art in Norway.

Her time aboard Leg 5 of the Amundsen in October 2025 gave her a unique perspective, which she shares here.

In October 2025 I was invited on board the Canadian research icebreaker CCGS Amundsen as an artist working in Arts and Culture in Nunavut. I was there in an exploratory capacity, working with Myrah Graham, the Amundsen Science Northern Research Liaison, to test out the idea of an Artist Residency on the ship by being an Artist in Residence on the ship.

I was working on a silly little project. I don’t say that to diminish my work, I think silly and little are excellent qualities. But my project was silly and little and everyone else had such big and important tasks to do. They were studying climate change, monitoring wildlife, flying helicopters on real-deal search and rescue missions. They were so kind, and generous, sharing their work with me, letting me help collect samples, and answering all my most basic questions.

When I was asked about what I was doing, I held up my mess of yarn and said “I’m making something weird!”, ending the conversation there. I felt a special kind of out-of-placeness that comes when you are on a boat, in the Foxe Basin, surrounded by very clever and accomplished people, who are really trying their best to make you feel welcome.

I wanted to take portraits of people wearing this thing I made. I was so nervous to interrupt everyone’s important work to do my silly art. First I sheepishly asked Holly Hogan, the seabird observer onboard,  if she would debut my creation, and she graciously agreed. We went to the bridge, where she was stationed every day, recording each sea bird that crossed her line of sight. I took her picture with my 35mm camera looking out to sea. Then Sophie Bédard at her post observing sea mammals. I then asked Guylaine Dubois, a steward of the Amundsen crew, if I could take her picture on the deck after finishing setting the dining room for lunch. 

Each participant transformed from camera-shy to supermodel as soon as they donned this silly little mask. Within the hour, folks were asking ME if I would take their portrait, in their workplace, in my pink, frilly face-jellyfish. I ran out of film before I ran out of participants.

I wish I had done it sooner. I felt suddenly like I was supposed to be there. I left my place of belonging to board the ship, and they left their place of belonging to enter my artwork. We met in a space of deep silliness between our worlds. 

I had the job of dreaming of future jobs where artists and scientists share knowledge, collaborate and maybe create something neither could have done alone. This human experiment was both surprising and hopeful.

My deepest gratitude to models Holly Hogan, Guylaine Dubois, Alysha Wilson-Maksagak, Marion Forquez, Patrick Pata, Alfred Champigmy, Joshua Van Dijk, Zoe Walker, Judith Bernadet, Pierre-Yves Pascal  and Sophie Bédard , to Isabelle Gapp from the University of Aberdeen, the Amundsen Science Team, the Coast Guard Crew, all the Leg 5 2025 Expedition participants and especially Myrah Graham, who made the whole thing happen.