Community D

This work focuses on the Individual fitting into a greater and more complex whole.Each unto itself is its own small world with gradients and reference points, yet fitting into a greater context. Problem solving and meaning in pattern.

Original shapes increasingly abstracted after the cuticle of mutant fruit fly embryos*.

*During the last stages of development of the fruit fly embryo, the cuticle is deposited- defining the structure of larval body plan (larvae eventually pupate and then emerge as adult flies- the little ones on your bananas in the kitchen) . Mutations in genes that encode proteins that are important for the body plan will result in embryo cuticles-with defects and holes that indicate places and times when that gene and its protein product are important.

Dimensions: 9 X 12in

Media: Paper, Watercolor, Ink

Framed: No

About the Science Artist: 

Steph Nowotarski (She/Her, They/Them) is an artist and scientist currently located in Kansas City, MO. Born and raised in Mertztown, PA, Steph had the excellent fortune to have at least one teacher every year whom fostered a love of learning in her K-12 years, and thus she wanted to do everything. She’s tried to do just that ever since.

While at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, PA, attempting a double major in Genetic Engineering and Studio Art, she was forced into a very rational decision based on resources: you can paint in your home, but you can’t afford (or even rent) a confocal microscope. After her BS, Steph moved to North Carolina to continue science training, fostering her love of the visual side of science though microscopy, and answering some really interesting questions about how cells in a tissue change their shape and probe their environment. She is currently a postdoctoral research assistant at the Stowers Institute in Kansas City, MO.

During her time on the microscope she doodled (a lot) and while in grad school, developed a habit still in place: science days, art nights and weekends. Her favored mediums change with her mood, the season, and how much time she has in front of her: oils, watercolors, inks, printmaking, a little bit of everything. She has found that each needs the other for the world to be in balance: her science is better with art and her art, better with science.

Insta: stephnowotarski, twitter: @S_Nowotarski