Art in the Service of Science
Danial Khorsandi
Biotechnologist, Postdoctoral Researcher at Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation
Have you ever listened to a piece of music and recognized the composer without knowing that? Or, have you ever seen a piece of painting and recognized the painter without knowing that? or, have you ever watched a movie and... recognized the director without...? Of course! This is the essence of creativity; the link between the creature and its creator, the art and the artist. Or as they say "The Soul of The Creation".
Now, how important is the translation of scientific material to a piece of art? How important is the application of visual arts in science and scientific materials (i.e. articles, protocols, grants, etc.)?
"Art plays a significant role in the development of science and how information and discoveries are shared.?Most people consider science and art to be on opposite sides of the spectrum, but at the conjunction of art and science is the lesser-known field of scientific illustration.?Even if you have never heard of scientific illustration before, you have likely seen it in many places.?Think about the science textbooks you used in school, the images and models in a museum exhibit you visited, or maybe even that poster at your doctor’s office that shows what your organs look like." (Kara Perilli, The Franklin Institute)
Illustration for science is more than just visual art. It is a method for conveying intricate ideas, specifics, and themes in a captivating and understandable way. Artwork can help people comprehend scientific concepts better by moving beyond the convoluted jargon that is frequently used to convey them. In order to educate and explain, scientists (or artists) accurately depict scientific themes in their drawings or renderings. To create realistic depictions of the subject, a scientific illustrator must combine technical art and aesthetic talents with observations and research that are grounded in science. For audiences of all skill levels, illustrations, models, or movies provide visual explanations and depictions to aid in making the topics understandable and interesting. It can be used to clearly explain complex concepts to the general public, but it can also be used to instruct scientists or medical professionals who are undergoing training by providing incredibly detailed visuals or animations.
领英推è
A picture, as they say, is worth a thousand words.
The fact is, I illustrate my figures by myself. A friend of mine recognized my latest publication by its figure. "Always a sun in the middle of revolving planets!", he said. (See Figure 1) Well, "Yeah, I know!" But still, I do not see anything wrong with it. This is how my neurons translate science to visual art. And it has a style! And at the end, how cool is it when you recognize an author by its Figure-1!
How do you care about the figures in your articles? Please share your comments with me.
M.D. Student | Junior Research Assistant in regenerative medicine | Co-founder of ISRAT
2 å¹´Excellent! What software did you use to illustrate figures?
Ph.D.
2 å¹´Great piece! I love it!
M.Sc Food Safety & Food Risk Management / B.Sc Food Science & Technology
2 å¹´As we all have seen even at our school time, materials with illustrations and visual expressions were more understanding and acceptable as a scientific matters. So, its a creative way to express your scientific research and conclusions, however there are few people that have artistic vision on science! By the way, I really like your artistic taste especially on music! ;)
Ph.D. Candidate at TMU
2 å¹´Hi Danial, it takes time to have your own pictorial illustration, one known as your scientific brand. What Prof. Babak Anasori does is also a pictorial brand to me. Moreover, not everyone has the artistic talent to develop one as you had. I follow enthusiastically specific people whom I have common research interest with, few of them are that kind, though being scientifically well-experienced and well known.