First published: March 2026
Geologist Judith McNicol studied the age-old lines of the Earth before embarking on an exploration of her own inner landscape
Contours, sediments, erosion patterns and the traces left by ancient rivers were once the language of Judith McNicol. Born in London in 1948, McNicol often felt alone as a child, detached from and fearful of other people, happy to disappear into her inner world. She sought solace exploring and collecting rocks, fossils and other “treasures” . Family holidays around Europe ignited a passion for maps, geology, archaeology, astronomy and all the subjects that the wonders of travel and discovery provide. She went on to study Earth Sciences at university, first in Geneva, Switzerland, then in London, ultimately specialising in Geomorphology, the science of landforms shaped by deep time and unseen forces.
The Heavy City, 1994, Indian ink on paper, 19.5 x 16 in. / 50 x 40 cm
However, McNicol began to feel dissatisfied with her work in the academic sector and, in the early nineties, during a research trip to the stark, frozen landscapes of Iceland, she had an epiphany. “Standing among the black rocks and white ice, I asked myself, ‘Why am I measuring things instead of simply enjoying the beauty of being here? I have mapped all of this, now it’s my inner self that I need to research,’” she says.
By CATHY WARD
This is an article extract; read the full article in Raw Vision 126.
