Devoted to the amazing symmetries of atoms
and the beautiful complex structures of molecules, crystallography
has always had a naturally artsy side. Now the American
Crystallographic Association (ACA) has begun an annual contest
encouraging individuals to submit visual art depicting
crystallography topics and explaining them in a caption. The winner
of the inaugural competition, David Goodsell of Scripps, created
"Blood 2,000,000X," a watercolor that reveals Y-shaped antibodies,
UFO-resembling cholesterol molecules, and other well-known compounds
in the vicinity of a red blood cell.
Other entries included
"Poliovirus," a sculpture of the paralyzing pathogen’s protein coat
attaching to a receptor; and "Fracture," a mosaic of crystallized
tuberculosis bacteria fracturing in a gel. Additional entries had
titles such as "24 Detergents Upside Down," "Be Fruitful and
Symmetrize," and "H to D Tango" (where H stands for hydrogen and D
for deuterium). ACA plans to continue the competition at its
upcoming meetings.
Images at Physics News Graphics
More entries and details at the
Art in Crystallography Web site
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