GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida students, staff and faculty have until Dec. 20 to enter the seventh Elegance of Science art competition.

Organized by the Marston Science Library and Florida Museum of Natural History, the contest is open to UF students and employees who create two-dimensional images or videos as part of their research or incorporate scientific tools or concepts in their artwork.

“In the past competitions, we received entries as diverse as photos of armadillo embryo, a mosquito carrying a botfly larva and a painting of a virus and of a sinus cavity, Picasso style,” said Andrei Sourakov, the collection coordinator at the Florida Museum McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity and one of the event organizers. “This event teaches the public about diverse sciences at UF and bridges gaps between people from across campus.”

Each participant may submit a maximum of five entries, which must be high-resolution images accompanied by no more than a 150-word description on its artistic, scientific and educational value. Descriptions should be written for a non-scientific audience. Entries are scored by a panel of judges based on how well they highlight the connection between artistic and scientific perceptions of reality.

Prizes include $150 for first place, $100 for second place, $50 for third place and honorable mentions.
An awards reception and short presentations by contestants will take place in 2018.

For more information on entering the competition, contest rules or to view past entries, visit www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/eos.

Writer: Catalina Ruiz, printern@flmnh.ufl.edu
Source: Andrei Sourakov, 352-273-2013, asourakov@flmnh.ufl.edu
Media contact: Paul Ramey, 352-273-2054, pramey@flmnh.ufl.edu