BIOL2306 Scientific Illustration - Flinders University

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Overview

Students will learn how to produce accurate drawings of scientific specimens, especially relating to vertebrate anatomy. This intensive topic emphasises the refinement of observational skills and the translation of their essence to two dimensions. This will be achieved through a range of physical and digital illustration techniques using different drawing … For more content click the Read More button below.

Students will learn how to produce accurate drawings of scientific specimens, especially relating to vertebrate anatomy. This intensive topic emphasises the refinement of observational skills and the translation of their essence to two dimensions. This will be achieved through a range of physical and digital illustration techniques using different drawing tools, lighting and media. The topic culminates with the production of an illustrative piece of publication quality.

Topic availabilities

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Tuition pattern

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Aims

This topic aims to provide students with the basic skills necessary to accurately draw an object in order to create an illustration suitable for scientific publication.

The topic provides an opportunity to:

Explore drawing systems
Gain experience in a range of media appropriate to scientific illustration including pencil and ink
Gain observational drawing skills that enable the accurate recording of scientific specimens and associated morphological features
Gain experience in a range of drawing mechanics for observation and rendering objects including drawing free hand and using lighting, shapes and contour lines to create form
Gain skills utilising a range of illustrative methods including shading with pencil, stippling and cross-hatching with ink
Create illustration in the service of scientific inquiry
Digitally process hand-drawn images for publication using programs such as Adobe Photoshop

Learning outcomes

On completion of this topic you will be expected to be able to:

Apply principles of visual communication to the development of scientific specimen illustration

Demonstrate the capacity to interpret illustration briefs

Generate publication-quality illustrations of scientific specimens

Discuss traditional and contemporary methods of scientific illustration in relation to vertebrate morphology

Research and apply techniques for illustrative work

Assessments

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Requisites information

Anti-requisites:

Handbook

Scientific Illustration

BIOL2306