Art of Science Contest

Join us on a journey where art meets science!

2024 Exhibition

Art and science converge once again in the UC San Diego Library’s latest exhibition, Art of Science 2024, a showcase of stunning visuals and groundbreaking research, open to the public. The exhibition, set to open at the UC San Diego Ida & Cecil Green Faculty Club on Wednesday, October 16, will feature seven winning images from the Library’s 2024 Art of Science contest, along with select works from the 2021, 2022, and 2023 contests. 

Winning images will also be exhibited in Starlight, the Library’s digital exhibit platform. All submissions will be preserved in the Library's Digital Collections repository. 

Now in its fourth year, the Art of Science contest celebrates the beauty that emerges during scientific research at UC San Diego and beyond. This year’s contest began with a call for submissions, inviting UC San Diego students, researchers, and affiliates to submit images or graphics that tell a story about their research. Each submission included a caption explaining the work in an engaging and accessible way for non-scientists.

“Our Art of Science contest has quickly become a beloved tradition on campus and within the community,” said Audrey Geisel University Librarian Erik Mitchell. “I’m delighted by its growing popularity, as it transforms groundbreaking research at UC San Diego into a format that is both visually stunning and accessible to all. The contest also underscores the importance of the Library’s Research Data Curation services, which play a vital role in helping our scholars preserve and share their work effectively.”

Judging

A panel of judges composed of UC San Diego faculty, staff, and prominent community members selected the 2024 Art of Science contest winners. The judges included:

• Stuart Sandin, professor, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
• Erik T. Mitchell, Audrey Geisel University Librarian, UC San Diego
• James C. Nieh, professor, Department of Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution, UC San Diego
• Clarissa Chevalier, Ph.D. candidate, Visual Arts Department, UC San Diego
• Michael Field, director of experience design, San Diego Natural History Museum
• Lynda Claassen, director, Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego Library

Evaluation Criteria

• Image: aesthetic excellence (captivating, stunning, and/or otherwise visually interesting) as well as scientific or technical interest.
• Caption: the one-line caption should tantalize audiences, inspiring them to learn more about the research. It should use clear, concise language that is accessible to non-scientists.

Open Voting

An open voting period allowed the wider campus and San Diego community to vote for their favorite image, resulting in the Open Voting Winner.

Please direct questions about the contest to Abigail Pennington at apennington@ucsd.edu.

Image credit:  
Current page: Keunyoung Kim, "Mouse Retinal Ganglion Cells," 2021, Judges' Award, Faculty/Scientist Participant Category.
Previous page, "Explore" section: Adi Khen, "Bigeye Octopus Suckers," 2021, Open Voting Winner.