The Tree of Life

This artwork is based on theoretical ecology research that we’ve been conducting the past two semesters here at Adrian College. The research focused on the question of how tree biodiversity is maintained in tropical... [ view full abstract ]

This artwork is based on theoretical ecology research that we’ve been conducting the past two semesters here at Adrian College. The research focused on the question of how tree biodiversity is maintained in tropical rainforests. Through coding in R, a statistical programming language, a variety of codes, graphs, and results have been produced which have been incorporated into a two-dimensional piece of artwork that showcases the beauty of science and discovery. This work is, in essence, a deeper look at the beauty to be found within the world of statistical analysis. Our models show patterns of tree and pathogen dynamics that create a living ecosystem, an undiscovered world, hidden behind mathematics. Lines and shapes have been replaced with data sets and graphs, each replicating the cycles of life and death as we attempt to see it in the natural world and represent it in a new perspective. Our premise was to create a work of art that depicted more than a single scene of nature; it is instead reminiscent of the elegance to be found in the complication of the ecosystem that transcends the lifetime of the human form.

This work fits the ribbon “Crossing Boundaries and Disciplines” best as it required scientific knowledge, data analysis, and computer programming as well as the innovative application of those results into an artist composition. This has also been an incredibly creative process. The completion of this project meant finding a way to incorporate unsightly data into an alluring piece. Computer coding is often described as an art form; we set out to prove that it is.