“Civilisation and the life of nations are governed by the same laws as prevail throughout nature and organic life.” *

As you have probably guessed by now, people who are attempting to cross the boundaries between science and art impress me greatly.

Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919) was one of them. Although not many people recognise his name nowdays, he was the most influential evolutionary theorist of his era; he discovered, described and named thousands of new species, mapped a genealogical tree relating all life forms, and coined many terms in biology, including ecology, phylogeny, stem cell, and the kingdom Protista.

Moreover he is responsible for the prints of the Art Forms of Nature (Kunstformen der Natur), translated from sketch to print by lithographer Adolf Giltsc.  Originally published in sets of ten between 1899 and 1904, it consists of 100 prints of various organisms, many of which were first described by Haeckel himself, and enjoyed a very broad audience at its time. 

In his prints Haeckel has attempted to portray nature as an art form in itself focused on its symmetry and organisation. Many artists of the 21st century have been influenced by Art Forms' prints; from  from Alexis Rockman and Philip Taaffe, who have borrowed from Haeckel's prints directly; to Alex Ross, Karen Arm, and Tricia Keightley.

A contemporary artist directly influenced by Haeckel's prints is Rogan Brown. He creates paper sculptures re-presenting both mineral and vegetal natural organic forms. His work looks very complex and intricate and very delicate at the same time.

Cut Pod, 2013 Handcut Paper

Kernel, 2013, Hand cut paper

Spore, 2013, Handcut paper sculpture

 * Quote by Ernst Haeckel


For further reading on the influence of Haeckel's prints on 21st century artists read:
David Brody, "Ernst Haeckel and the Microbial Baroque" http://cabinetmagazine.org/issues/7/ernsthaeckel.php

"Don't tell me the moon is shining, show me the glint of light on broken glass"*

T4 bacteriophage virus. This virus infects E. coli bacteria and has been seen to have potential as a therapy against multi drug resistant strains of many bacteria.

H1N1 influenza virus, commonly referred to as “swine flu“.

Adenoviruses are a group of viruses that cause respiratory (breathing) illnesses, such as a common cold, conjunctivitis (an infection in the eye), croup and bronchitis.

Escherichia coli, commonly abbreviated E. coli,  is a  rod-shaped bacterium that is commonly found in the lower intestine of warm-blooded organisms. Ec892894 is one of them!

EC892894's self portrait currently shown in MoMA in NY, USA

You can see more about Luke Jerram's amazing work here.

*Anton Chekhov

"Bobby from school said science is a sham and shouldn't be taken seriously"

Today ec892894 and sc3439 are giving their place to some different science-related comic strips.

Since 2006 the Union of Concerned Scientists has been organizing a cartoon contest about the challenges and the strains of the relationship between science and society. These strips then form the Editorial Cartoon Calendar of the Union.This year it is an All-Star Contest among the best strips of the past seven years.

We proudly present our 8 all time favorites. Which are yours?

Unfortunately, I couldn't find many details about the contestants but they all manage to do a very sharp and to the point criticism of the public misconceptions of science. Hats off to them!