Killackey Illustration
@kjkillackey.bsky.social
Natural science 🐡 & archaeological illustration 🏺 by Kathryn Killackey. NEH-Mellon Foundation Fellow ('23 - '24). Available for freelance #sciart. Lover of #books, #textiles, and absurdities. She/her
www.killackeyillustration.com
www.killackeyillustration.com
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Whatever you're celebrating today (or if you're not celebrating at all), please enjoy this GIFt of firefly light from the archives of @biodivlibrary.bsky.social
Biologia Centrali-Americana. Insecta, v. 3, pt. 2 (1880-86). biodiversitylibrary.org/page/580274.
Biologia Centrali-Americana. Insecta, v. 3, pt. 2 (1880-86). biodiversitylibrary.org/page/580274.
December 25, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Whatever you're celebrating today (or if you're not celebrating at all), please enjoy this GIFt of firefly light from the archives of @biodivlibrary.bsky.social
Biologia Centrali-Americana. Insecta, v. 3, pt. 2 (1880-86). biodiversitylibrary.org/page/580274.
Biologia Centrali-Americana. Insecta, v. 3, pt. 2 (1880-86). biodiversitylibrary.org/page/580274.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Help the SciArt Feed 🐡 reach 5,000 subscribers!
The intersection of art & science.
No generative AI, no NFTs; a curated Feed of great visual art by skilled people.
🧡 Please share, pin & like today:
The intersection of art & science.
No generative AI, no NFTs; a curated Feed of great visual art by skilled people.
🧡 Please share, pin & like today:
December 28, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Help the SciArt Feed 🐡 reach 5,000 subscribers!
The intersection of art & science.
No generative AI, no NFTs; a curated Feed of great visual art by skilled people.
🧡 Please share, pin & like today:
The intersection of art & science.
No generative AI, no NFTs; a curated Feed of great visual art by skilled people.
🧡 Please share, pin & like today:
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Archivists/librarians please share the coolest thing in your collections that will never be digitized.
I live in the heart of California gold country. One of the richest mines ever in CA is nearby. Opened circa 1860 closed 1942. A local foundation has preserved the records on site. I know not a stitch has been digitized and am confident no more than 2 pro historians have ever been in there.
December 22, 2025 at 2:31 AM
Archivists/librarians please share the coolest thing in your collections that will never be digitized.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Important art (and life) lesson from a wonderful textile professor. TLDR: Don’t be afraid to show the human hand behind your work.
I took several textile classes at SFSU around 2007. For one assignment I did a bunch of hand embroidery, outlining some geometric shapes with thick bands of brick stitch. When I showed it to my professor, he said something like it was beautifully done but I should consider some rougher marks, …
December 26, 2025 at 5:42 PM
Important art (and life) lesson from a wonderful textile professor. TLDR: Don’t be afraid to show the human hand behind your work.
Christmas book! “The Nature of Fashion” by @carrysomers.bsky.social And look at the beautiful cover design by Kimberly Glyder and cover art by Victoria Villasana! Can’t wait to get started.
#textiles 🧶 #fashionhistory #archaeology 🏺 #botany
#textiles 🧶 #fashionhistory #archaeology 🏺 #botany
December 25, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Christmas book! “The Nature of Fashion” by @carrysomers.bsky.social And look at the beautiful cover design by Kimberly Glyder and cover art by Victoria Villasana! Can’t wait to get started.
#textiles 🧶 #fashionhistory #archaeology 🏺 #botany
#textiles 🧶 #fashionhistory #archaeology 🏺 #botany
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Merry Christmas everyone! 🎄🌟
We all love a good reindeer at Christmas! These ones were painted in Font-de-Gaume cave in France 18,000 years ago!
Rudolph the Red-backed Cave deer? 🎶🦌
#RockArtThursday #archaeology 🏺
We all love a good reindeer at Christmas! These ones were painted in Font-de-Gaume cave in France 18,000 years ago!
Rudolph the Red-backed Cave deer? 🎶🦌
#RockArtThursday #archaeology 🏺
December 25, 2025 at 1:21 PM
Merry Christmas everyone! 🎄🌟
We all love a good reindeer at Christmas! These ones were painted in Font-de-Gaume cave in France 18,000 years ago!
Rudolph the Red-backed Cave deer? 🎶🦌
#RockArtThursday #archaeology 🏺
We all love a good reindeer at Christmas! These ones were painted in Font-de-Gaume cave in France 18,000 years ago!
Rudolph the Red-backed Cave deer? 🎶🦌
#RockArtThursday #archaeology 🏺
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
it's Christmas Eve but it's also the 16 year anniversary of the time an art historian for the Hungarian National Gallery spotted a long lost painting while watching Stuart Little with his 3-year-old daughter, recognizing it in the movie set
December 24, 2025 at 11:40 AM
it's Christmas Eve but it's also the 16 year anniversary of the time an art historian for the Hungarian National Gallery spotted a long lost painting while watching Stuart Little with his 3-year-old daughter, recognizing it in the movie set
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
From our archive ~ Abraham Werner's wonderful 19C book Nomenclature of Colours gives swatches of all colour tones, & where to find them in nature. So, for example, Bluish Green is the colour of thrush’s egg, underside of rose leaves, & the mineral beryl mymodernmet.com/werner-nomen...
December 24, 2025 at 7:00 AM
From our archive ~ Abraham Werner's wonderful 19C book Nomenclature of Colours gives swatches of all colour tones, & where to find them in nature. So, for example, Bluish Green is the colour of thrush’s egg, underside of rose leaves, & the mineral beryl mymodernmet.com/werner-nomen...
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Bee-autifully crafted gold ornament in the form of a little bee 🐝 ❤️
Length 1.90 cm. From Minoan Crete, circa 1700-1600 BC.
📷 British Museum www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
#Archaeology
Length 1.90 cm. From Minoan Crete, circa 1700-1600 BC.
📷 British Museum www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
#Archaeology
December 23, 2025 at 10:25 AM
Bee-autifully crafted gold ornament in the form of a little bee 🐝 ❤️
Length 1.90 cm. From Minoan Crete, circa 1700-1600 BC.
📷 British Museum www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
#Archaeology
Length 1.90 cm. From Minoan Crete, circa 1700-1600 BC.
📷 British Museum www.britishmuseum.org/collection/o...
#Archaeology
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Celebrating Winter Solstice, a part of a datavisualization that I once created.
It shows where in the world the solstice is/was a ritual celebration, for me personal it reminds me to aim for light in my heart.
#dataviz #wintersolstice
It shows where in the world the solstice is/was a ritual celebration, for me personal it reminds me to aim for light in my heart.
#dataviz #wintersolstice
December 22, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Celebrating Winter Solstice, a part of a datavisualization that I once created.
It shows where in the world the solstice is/was a ritual celebration, for me personal it reminds me to aim for light in my heart.
#dataviz #wintersolstice
It shows where in the world the solstice is/was a ritual celebration, for me personal it reminds me to aim for light in my heart.
#dataviz #wintersolstice
I’ve just realized @robgmacfarlane.bsky.social hasn’t made his usual annual posts but others are on it and re-reading “The Dark Is Rising”. I’m actually in the UK at the moment, traveling through the book’s landscapes and it’s wonderful.
I just passed the part of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising (my tri-annual re-read) where the rooks are attacking Will on Midwinter's Eve! It might have gone better if more were like this fellow.
A pretty grand rook watching over us on the Pembrokeshire coast path above Whitesands Bay this afternoon; tame & pretty intelligent looking 🐦⬛
December 20, 2025 at 11:56 AM
I’ve just realized @robgmacfarlane.bsky.social hasn’t made his usual annual posts but others are on it and re-reading “The Dark Is Rising”. I’m actually in the UK at the moment, traveling through the book’s landscapes and it’s wonderful.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
I just passed the part of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising (my tri-annual re-read) where the rooks are attacking Will on Midwinter's Eve! It might have gone better if more were like this fellow.
A pretty grand rook watching over us on the Pembrokeshire coast path above Whitesands Bay this afternoon; tame & pretty intelligent looking 🐦⬛
December 17, 2025 at 7:53 AM
I just passed the part of Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising (my tri-annual re-read) where the rooks are attacking Will on Midwinter's Eve! It might have gone better if more were like this fellow.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Yesterday I saw this incredible trompe l'oeil painted in 1771 by Jean-Étienne Liotard, a painter I love but whose work I too rarely encounter.
December 18, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Yesterday I saw this incredible trompe l'oeil painted in 1771 by Jean-Étienne Liotard, a painter I love but whose work I too rarely encounter.
I slipped out of the TAG York party last night and found this beauty waiting patiently for me, a little blessing on the proceedings.
December 17, 2025 at 9:34 AM
I slipped out of the TAG York party last night and found this beauty waiting patiently for me, a little blessing on the proceedings.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
CONGRATULATIONS to the @trowelblazers.bsky.social for their incredible contributions to the field.
Praxis baby, praxis
Praxis baby, praxis
We've been up in York for @tag2025york.bsky.social conference where 3 of us met, Brenna gave a talk on the challenge of creating an accidental archive, AND... we only went & won the Outstanding Achievement Award for Archaeological Theory In Action 🏆!
Huge gratitude to the entire community ❤️ 🏺
Huge gratitude to the entire community ❤️ 🏺
December 16, 2025 at 7:28 PM
CONGRATULATIONS to the @trowelblazers.bsky.social for their incredible contributions to the field.
Praxis baby, praxis
Praxis baby, praxis
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
🧪 Digital reference collections like this are such a godsend 🙏
We are excited to announce a new collection - Powell-Cotton Museum! Did you ever need more Chimpanzee or Colobus hand bones for your project, or perhaps some Gorilla tibiae and femora (and more)? Visit the collection and explore!
human-fossil-record.org/index.php?/c...
human-fossil-record.org/index.php?/c...
December 16, 2025 at 12:25 PM
🧪 Digital reference collections like this are such a godsend 🙏
This was tons of fun and great to meet @apolitopoulos.bsky.social and Stu Eve after months of zoom meetings (@clmorgan.bsky.social and I go waaaaay back but seeing her in person is wonderful too).
After a short presentation by @clmorgan.bsky.social, our Worldbuilding session at @tag2025york.bsky.social is in full swing! Many many archaeological worlds are being built!
December 16, 2025 at 12:26 PM
This was tons of fun and great to meet @apolitopoulos.bsky.social and Stu Eve after months of zoom meetings (@clmorgan.bsky.social and I go waaaaay back but seeing her in person is wonderful too).
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Excited to be doing TAG UK after many North America TAGs. Although juggling two kids I do hope to see many unmet Bluesky archaeologists in York this week!
December 14, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Excited to be doing TAG UK after many North America TAGs. Although juggling two kids I do hope to see many unmet Bluesky archaeologists in York this week!
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Would you like to know how to make a zine? Here's easy step-by-step instructions on how to make your own without the use of a computer by @thorazos.bsky.social
December 14, 2025 at 1:57 AM
Would you like to know how to make a zine? Here's easy step-by-step instructions on how to make your own without the use of a computer by @thorazos.bsky.social
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Hello!
A little Sunday evening survey... 📝
We're looking for examples where info or resources concerning achievements of 🏺⛏️ #trowelblazing women in archaeology, geology or palaeontology have been removed or vanished from public sources in the past year due to external pressures...
Pls repost!
A little Sunday evening survey... 📝
We're looking for examples where info or resources concerning achievements of 🏺⛏️ #trowelblazing women in archaeology, geology or palaeontology have been removed or vanished from public sources in the past year due to external pressures...
Pls repost!
December 14, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Hello!
A little Sunday evening survey... 📝
We're looking for examples where info or resources concerning achievements of 🏺⛏️ #trowelblazing women in archaeology, geology or palaeontology have been removed or vanished from public sources in the past year due to external pressures...
Pls repost!
A little Sunday evening survey... 📝
We're looking for examples where info or resources concerning achievements of 🏺⛏️ #trowelblazing women in archaeology, geology or palaeontology have been removed or vanished from public sources in the past year due to external pressures...
Pls repost!
I’ve been in London for 24 hours and my Californian accent has already relocated to the mid-Atlantic. My children are mortified.
December 9, 2025 at 4:20 PM
I’ve been in London for 24 hours and my Californian accent has already relocated to the mid-Atlantic. My children are mortified.
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
Great story on the collaborative work between my colleague Lindi Masur, my MA student Rylan Godbout, and colleagues at the Woodland Cultural Center. news.mcmaster.ca/mcmaster-and...
McMaster and Woodland Cultural Centre work together to uncover clues about ancient Indigenous diets
The year-long project between McMaster Archaeology and the WCC is finding new stories in the Centre's archaeological collection.
news.mcmaster.ca
December 6, 2025 at 2:24 AM
Great story on the collaborative work between my colleague Lindi Masur, my MA student Rylan Godbout, and colleagues at the Woodland Cultural Center. news.mcmaster.ca/mcmaster-and...
Reposted by Killackey Illustration
'The perfect brand collaboration doesn't exist.'
Agatha Christie/Mr Men:
Agatha Christie/Mr Men:
December 5, 2025 at 11:33 AM
'The perfect brand collaboration doesn't exist.'
Agatha Christie/Mr Men:
Agatha Christie/Mr Men: