Jen Christiansen, Senior Graphics Editor at Scientific American magazine, and presenter at the 2018 GNSI Annual conference has made available the transcription of her plenary talk. Visit the blog post at SA Visual, to read Jen's thoughts about her career at the intersection of illustration, design, and science. The plenary talk is also available in video format at GNSI's Facebook page.
Pollinator Partnership is seeking an artist to render the 2019 Pollinator Poster, this year focusing on “Endangered Pollinators and Their Habitats.” To apply, please send a one-page narrative concept idea with a draft sketch to Kelly Rourke at [email protected] by Monday, November 26, 2018.
On September 18th GNSI members and a Smithsonian botanist participated in a panel discussion on the critical role of art used in the pursuit of science. The participants were (GNSI members) Sally Bensusen, Alice Tangerini, Britt Griswold, Diana Marques, along with (botanist) Kenneth Wurdack.
In conjunction with the GNSI 50th anniversary exhibit “Visualize: Art Revealing Science” that was on display at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) gallery, it was a well-attended event that gave all the panelists an opportunity to talk about their careers and about visual science communication at large. It was streamed on Facebook live and the video can be accessed here.
In conjunction with the GNSI's 50th Anniversary, three videos of interest for the science illustration community have been added to our YouTube Channel.
Fossils, Lost Worlds, and the Hero's Journey - with Dr. Kirk Johnson (1:05:20 min.)
Scientific storytelling is presently undergoing a golden age as we realize how important narrative, imagery, objects, humor, and surprise are to the absorption of meaning. Fossils are exquisite objects but they are also fragments of very ancient stories, and paleontologists are time travelers on planet earth. Dr. Johnson became a paleontologist to explore these lost worlds. But “fossil” can also be a derogatory term and he found that many people were bored by rocks. He began to watch people to see how they responded to scientific information. Using their cues, he learned he could make fossils funny or describe geology in terms of food without losing the thread of insight. He began to write like he spoke. He realized you need to look at your audience, respect them, and look for what makes them smile. In 1998, he began to travel with artist Ray Troll in search of fossils, rock shops and museums, and to meet the people who found fossils and worked at those rock shops and museums. They spent ten years traveling together searching for the remains of the prehistoric Pacific. Dr. Johnson will share the story of their quest and the book which came out of it. Includes art by Ray Troll.
In preparation for the 2019 Annual Conference in Brisbane (Queensland, Australia), June 29 through July 6, the Conference Oversight Committee put together initial research and tips for planning your flight.
Flight Travel Tips - a reference for finding flights on your own, and what you can expect in terms of fares. Download PDF here.
A group of Visual Arts organizations is doing a quick survey to get a handle on how artist use the Copyright system, or even if they use it. Plus they are looking for input on several ideas for how to improve the system in the USA. The survey is pretty easy and you are able to offer opinions on different proposed registration methods (multiple choice answers.) It takes about 10-15 min. This collected information is anonymous and is input for their commenting on the proposed US Copyright Office regulation changes.
Right now Illustrators appear to be treated pretty unfairly when compared to photographers. You might want to take a few minutes and fill this out, even if you have never copyrighted anything, but might consider if it was an easy thing to do.
Maeve Doyle, of the Association of Medical Illustrators (AMI), has written a good article about the process of reconstruction of an invertebrate at the Burgess Shale and the importance of art and the artist in science.
> Artistic reconstruction of Habelia optata by Joanna Liang.
For any GNSI members residing in New England: The New England chapter is seeking entries for a show on mass migrations in the NE area. Chapter membership not required. The show will run November 13 - December 27. Submit your entry forms by September 1st.
Mass migrations take place all over the world, yet when someone mentions mass migration, we are more likely to imagine huge herds of wildebeests and zebra on the plains of Africa than the visitors who come to our own backyards, ponds, rivers, forests, and beaches right here in New England. You don’t have to go on a safari halfway around the globe to encounter a migratory species, sometimes you simply have to step out into your own yard.
Guild of Natural Science Illustrators 50th Anniversary Conference Group Photo in the Kenneth E. Behring Family Hall Rotunda of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History on July 18, 2018. You can find a running list of the photo IDs here: https://2018.conf.gnsi.org/merchandise/group-photo-id
Longtime GNSI member Alice Tangerini is featured in the July issue of the Smithsonian Magazine.
Alice Tangerini’s botanical illustrations all begin the same way: with a seemingly simple line drawing, in which she explores a plant’s features—leaves, seed, stem, perhaps a flower or two. Next, she uses a microscope to investigate her specimen’s tiny hairs and veins, recreating their likeness in delicate lines with the pressure-sensitive pen of an architect or engineer drafter. Tangerini has adopted the tools and the vision of both the artist and scientist for her work, which is, as she describes it, “art in the service of science".
GNSI invites you to join us live on Facebook for a Conference Plenary session. Be a part of the GNSI Conference!
10:30 am July 17, 2018
My artist origin story takes a form I think is fairly common for scientific illustrators. I grew up in Seattle with parents who didn’t study science, and knew little about art, but encouraged my interest in both. In our household, you could maintain a concentrated area of chaos in some corner by saying “don’t touch that, I’m in the middle of a project,” and my brothers and I usually each had several projects going at any given time, ranging from painting to rebuilding machines bought from the thrift store.
My family loved nature, and we enjoyed camping, hiking and outdoor sports. Travel was also a priority, and a few times during childhood we were pulled out of school for months at a time for “sabbaticals,” which profoundly impacted my goals for adult life.
I’ve always been inquisitive and fascinated by nature. I would spend many hours drawing as a child but, despite my interest in nature, I never thought to draw it. Instead, I spent my time reading and drawing Marvel Comics superheroes. Being the son of immigrant parents, I was encouraged to pursue a career that was stable and with a steady income; they didn’t want their son to become a struggling artist. So I set my sights on science with the hopes of going to medical school.
In my senior year in high school, my biology teacher noticed that I used drawings to record my observations in labs and mentioned that some people made a living from illustrating scientific concepts. Looking back now I’m shocked that I didn’t even consider a career in scientific illustration. I guess I thought since this vocation involved art, it would be a hard sell to my parents. So I put it out of my mind.
Illustrators and their agents are invited to enter work to the World Illustration Awards into one of eight categories. The deadline for entries is February 6, 2018. Appropriate for science illustrators is the category "Research", described as "Research and investigation to represent, explain or understand information, including illustration supporting academic research, forensic illustration, scientific illustration, natural history illustration, medical illustration, visual informatics, and data visualization."
• This year there are cash prizes for the Overall Winners, sponsored by Rotring: $2,500+ for the Overall Professional Winner, and $1,300+ for the Overall New Talent Winner.
The first time I met Diane, she was interviewing me for a job. I remember thinking that Diane was really nice. I ended up getting that job, and over the years working with and being mentored by Diane, I found out I was wrong — Diane was not nice.
Diane was passionate, talented and thoughtful. She cared deeply for students. Caring about politics, art, animals, justice, and education, she was well-read and curious, proudly a life-long learner. She cared about her friends and family and lived her words with action, whether it meant standing up for someone, raising her own awareness, advocating for those being marginalized, or volunteering time and expertise to make a difference in her community. Diane was quiet about herself, and a cheerleader for others.
The Association of Medical Illustrators (AMI) is seeking presenters for the 2018 AMI 2018 Annual Conference in Newton, Massachusetts, July 18-21. This will be the 73rd Annual AMI Conference! We are inviting passionate speakers to illuminate the subjects that inspire you the most.
With the holidays fast approaching many of us will be shopping online for the perfect gifts for family and friends. Did you know you can support the mission of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators when you shop using Amazon Smile?
If you have never used Amazon Smile, when you go to https://smile.amazon.com, you will be directed to select a charity. Search for "Guild of Natural Science Illustrators". If you have used Smile before, you can choose a new organization to support (see the image below).
The Pollinator Partnership is seeking an artist to render the 2018 Pollinator Poster, this year focusing on “Pollinators and Seeds: Supporting healthy ecosystems and food security.” To apply to illustrate the poster, please send a one-page narrative concept idea with a draft sketch to Kelly Rourke at [email protected] by Monday, December 11, 2017. Final illustration will be due by Friday, February 9, 2018.
The Pollinator Partnership (P2) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization-- the largest organization in the world dedicated solely to the protection and promotion of pollinators and their ecosystems. Birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles, and other small mammals that pollinate plants are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food. They also sustain our ecosystems and produce our natural resources by helping plants reproduce. Unfortunately, they are in trouble. Some species have seen a 90% decline in their populations over the last decade. Without the actions of pollinators, agricultural economies, our food supply, and surrounding landscapes would suffer.
