Welcome to Forensic’s first (or four) installment of “Women in Forensics.” This column is authored by Antoinette T. Campbell, esteemed forensic scientist and founder of the Association of Women in Forensic Science, Inc. (AWIFS) and Club Philly Forensics—a youth forensic science and violence/education outreach program. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Temple University, Antoinette joined the City of Philadelphia as a forensic scientist. Determined to fulfill all her passions, she established AWIFS as a conduit for connecting like-minded individuals and organizations and provide STEM-based programming for youth and young adults. Antoinette has been profiled in the Philadelphia Inquirer, WHYY, 105.3 WDAS, 900 AM WURD, and myriad blogs. In 2017, she earned a nomination for the RAD Awards Scientist of the Year and continues to serve as a venerated member of several panels including the Philadelphia Science Festival-Partner Advisory Council and Parents United for Better Schools, Inc. Antoinette can be reached at: www.awifs.org, @womeninforensic, #womeninforensics
Whenever I'm out in public and people ask me about what I do for a living, I usually get the same response, "So, you get the dead bodies, right?" I can't blame them for being misinformed; where would they learn about how forensics science is structured if they're not enrolled at a forensics program or an avid watcher of forensic files? What I've realized is that people know very little about what forensic science professionals really do; they also don't understand that there are many specialized fields within forensic science and we all do something different; we all don't bear the title of a forensic scientist either.
Forensics is more than crime scene investigation and DNA, there are also fields like Forensic Art, Forensic Anthropology, Forensic Engineering, and Forensic Drug Chemistry—just to name a few. To me, one of the most intriguing forensic fields is Forensic Art. I guess it's because of my admiration for artists that have the ability to create something from nothing; it's a gift that not everyone possesses. When I was a child, I loved to draw and trace cartoons from the funnies paper, and I was great at it. I quit drawing when I was a teen after auditioning for an art program because I was unable to draw a bowl of fruit sitting on a table. I still love art though, it fascinates me!
A forensic artist interviews victims and witnesses to assist law enforcement and the community by creating a visual image either by hand or digitally to identify living, deceased or an unidentified deceased person. According to the book by Lisa Bailey, "Ask a Forensic Artist," there are three common types of forensic art: composite imagery, a single image developed in either pencil or Photoshop from a witness description of separate elements; image modification, hand-drawn or digitally altered images of existing photographs; and facial approximation, created from an unidentified skull or postmortem photograph. A specialized and somewhat-hidden forensic science field, Forensic Art is not typically offered as a degree at a college/university. Forensic artists work behind the scenes helping law enforcement find missing people and leads on suspects by combination art and science.
I met Lisa through Instagram a year or so ago @askaforensicartist. (Instagram is actually a great platform for connecting with other forensic professionals.) According to her, a retired FBI forensic artist, it can be really difficult for forensic artists to find full-time jobs. Forensic artists usually break into the field by starting out as a composite sketch artist at a law enforcement agency. Similar to any job you're destined to have, it takes grit and perseverance to get your foot in the door especially as a forensic artist. But what if the position does not exist at the agency? Then you have to network within the department to find out if composite sketches are needed, do a lot of them; Lisa recommends at least 40 hours of training in composite drawing. Prove yourself as a good artist to advance to other techniques like facial approximations. You have to take the initiative for higher-ups and colleagues to notice your work, even if it means investing in your professional advancement as Lisa did.
Cleaning skulls at the Body Farm in Tennessee.
Courtesy of @askaforensicartist/Lisa Bailey.
Lisa is straightforward about forensic art being a field for people with artistic skill, which means you need to know how to draw—and not just really detailed stick figures like the bowl of fruit I tried to draw. She was a seasoned artist prior to joining the FBI as an Illustrator. She served in the Navy, earned her art degree in graphic design and worked at John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory as a graphic artist. Lisa also already had several years of experience using Photoshop, the most widely used imaging and graphic design software in the world.
While Lisa was working at the FBI, she attended a three-week forensic facial imaging course at the FBI to learn interviewing techniques and how to put together composite drawings and facial approximation based on Krogman's guidelines, a method developed in the 1940s. Lisa follows and teaches more current tissue depth methods for the 3D age and postmortem facial approximations from the skull. But she says that getting the word out to forensic artists about more current facial approximation techniques is tough because most of the research is in scientific journals, and forensic artists work in law enforcement agencies—the articles are very technical.
As a forensic scientist myself, I can relate to the need for current research to be disseminated to forensic professionals who are unable to subscribe to scientific journals or attend conferences. Maybe a good idea would be to keep everyone in the loop with current techniques and methods in their discipline…
During her career, Lisa has invested in anatomy and tool sculpting courses, including a portrait sculpting class with sculptor, Phillippe Faraut. She also gathered a group of other forensic artists to do research on decomposed skulls at The University of Tennessee Knoxville-The Body Farm, The Forensic Anthropology Center. This research opportunity was unique and pivotal as the body’s all arrived at the university with driver’s licenses—meaning Lisa and her colleagues could compare the accuracy of their work, gaining valuable insight.
Composite sketches, drawn by the artist from the memory of a witness, are what Lisa calls a mix of "art and psychology." This takes a tremendous amount of skill, patience and interviewing techniques that Lisa refers to in her book as "cognitive interviewing." Interviewing a witness for a composite sketch is a long process and can be traumatic and stressful for the witness to relive what they may or may not have seen. For the artist, they do their best to get it right so the picture that goes out to the media and public can bring justice to both the victim and perpetrator.
Just think about a person who was brutally attacked and their attacker got away; they may be able to remember what their attacker looked like under the traumatic circumstances while being interviewed by a detective. The detective has a composite sketcher (sketch artist) draw a picture of what the victim can remember about the attacker. When the artist has finished the sketch, and it's approved by the victim, it's publicized in the media. If you've ever seen a wanted sketch on TV or hanging up somewhere, it was created by a forensic artist.
If you're not convinced on the significance of a forensic artist, think of the John and Jane Does' whose remains have not been identified—a forensic artist that receives their skull for facial approximation is able to give them a face that could be presumptively identified. A definitive identification would have to match DNA and dental records. This increases the descendants' chance of possibly being identified by someone, maybe even a family member. According to NamUs, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System established by the National Institute of Justice, more than 600,000 persons go missing in the United States every year. There are 13,183 open cases that are unidentified persons.
Lisa's book tells you everything you need to know about getting a job, what it's like to work as a forensic artist, what she learned, and the types of techniques and methods she uses for creating the likeness of living and deceased people. In the book, Lisa gives examples and has images of skulls she has replicated and sculpted. If you need some added visuals, she also has compelling photos of skulls on her Instagram page. She covers the steps to becoming a forensic artist and recommends a job in law enforcement while keeping your ear out for any composite sketcher opportunities. Getting an art degree is a career path she also recommends since forensic art isn't a degree you can get from a college/university. Investing in training keeps you current with techniques and methods to advance your career.
Lisa is passionate about her work; she says she can reach more people on Instagram than she could in a class. She's in the process of creating free infographics and tutorials. Her step-by-step start-to-finish tutorial on facial approximation will be available soon on her website askaforensicartist.com and Instagram @askaforensicartist. Because skulls from real cases or victim images can't be used, she will need skulls with life photos. There's also a sense of integrity with what she does, which is why she will only use donated skulls or replicas for educational purposes.
To learn more about forensic art and Lisa Bailey's work, please visit her website: askaforensicartist.com. Her book, "Ask a Forensic Artist", is available on Amazon.