Friday, December 2, 2016

Art, meet science

by Alicia Duplessis Jasmin

In Phytoplankton: A Studio in the Woods (pictured), Pippin Frisbie-Calder, a graduate student in printmaking in the Newcomb Art Department at Tulane, accomplishes the goal of intertwining the worlds of science and art. Completed through a combined process of pen-and-ink, screenprinting and watercolor, Frisbie-Calder succeeds at uncovering the realm in which microscopic marine plants from the wetlands of Louisiana dwell.

Phytoplankton is a spherical presentation, allowing viewers to observe what a scientist would see under the circular lens of a microscope.

Frisbie-Calder said the process to obtain the microorganisms was quite challenging. Samples were collected from nearby lakes, bayous and ponds and taken to a lab for a magnified view.

[continue reading the article on Tulane New Wave]