Artists Inspired by Science

Art and science have been linked since the beginning of time, and these five visual artists are perfect examples of the integration between these two disciplines (which are really not as disparate as one might think at first).

Susan Aldworth

Aldworth is an artist who collaborates with prominent neuroscientists to explore the study of human consciousness and how the brain works. She has created a series of prints directly from human brain tissue. Her work blurs the line between art and science and brings a greater understanding of the beauty of biology.

Maria Sibylla Merian

This 17th-century illustrator is remembered in history as “the woman who made science beautiful.” She traveled throughout Europe and South America (which was a much bigger deal 400 years ago!) to research, study, and paint, including entomological drawings of the metamorphosis of a butterfly.

Jen Stark

Stark is a modern artist working with brightly colored paper sculptures, drawings, and animations. Her particular areas of interest include sliced anatomy, wormholes, patterns found in nature, mathematics, and topography. Stark tells us that “I’ve always been fascinated with science and designs in nature and their significance. I love thinking about fractals, and mysterious things out in the universe, ideas of shamanism, altered states, and other dimensions… our culture (especially the west) has lost hold of these beautiful secrets and a deep connection to nature and how we’re all connected.”

George Surat

Best known for “Sunday Afternoon on La Grande Jatte,” Surat uses science — specifically, the science of chromoluminarism — to create his art. His paintings are examples of pointillism, which requires the viewer to mix the colors through their own eyes and brain rather than the artist mixing pigments on a palette.

Janet Saad-Cook

Saad-Cook describes her own portfolio as “[lying] at the intersection of light and space and time.” She works primarily in metals and coated glass, and in collaboration with architects, engineers, and astronomers. Her Sun Drawings incorporate reflected images and light that respond to the light of the sun and the passage of time.