Dana & Richelle: Week 16

Dana's update:

This week, I had seven of my neuron micrographs professionally printed.  I’ve been looking into where to get high quality prints and different types of paper.  After finding a place to make my prints, and selecting the brightest white paper, I sent in seven images for a test print.
 
When I returned a few hours later to pick up my prints, my face literally lit up with joy.  The colors were vibrant, the dendrites were huge, and I could see so many dendritic spines!  This was the first time I had seen my neurons printed so large and in color.  Normally, I only look at these images in the lab and on my iPhone screen.  The actual prints are a very exciting step up from my cell phone screen.

Here are the first seven prints of my neuron micrographs: three full cells and four close-up images of dendrites. The sizes are 12” x 12” and 12” x 18”.

Already, four people have asked me to make additional prints for them, which I will gladly do.  Two different people have expressed interest in hanging these in UChicago’s new neuroscience institute, which I would absolutely love.  The institute is brand new, so the walls are completely empty and very white.  I want these to be accessible so everyone can see what neurons look like.  I want everyone to be able to appreciate the intersections of science and art. 
 
My next step is to print these even bigger, add more images to the collection, and maybe think about printing them on sheets of metal.  I also need to explore how to hang/frame these for the upcoming symposium at the SciArt Center.  Richelle and I are meeting via Google+ on Tuesday night, and I’m looking forward to asking for her advice on how I should display my neurons.  Hope to see you at The Bridge symposium on February 17th.
 
Cheers!

Richelle's update:

For the symposium, I will have 10 new drawings completed.  These illustrations are visual interpretations of Dana’s writings on autism, neuroscience, genetics, and other ponderings about our humanity. This is a fun project for me to discover new imagery and subject matter.  Our collaboration continues to elaborate my own interests in connectivity, neurobiology, and evolution!

Drawings in progress.