Past Events

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Time and Date: Panel discussion on the Power of Scientific Images: 8th November at 12:30 pm, Exhibition: 2nd November to 16th November, 2018.

Location: CSIRO Discovery Centre Gallery and Theatre, North Road, CSIRO Black mountain, ACT.

“To obtain wide popular support for science… there needs to be a friendly interpreter between science and the layman. I believe that photography can be this spokesman, as no other form of expression can be.”

American photographer Berenice Abbott

 About the panel discussion

What is the importance of images in science? Join this conversation for an unique opportunity to explore the many powers of scientific images from different perspectives, including art, science and science communication.

Images as scientific tools are often the only doorway that scientists have to enter worlds unobservable to the naked eye. They can also act as interdisciplinary bridges between art and science, potentially reframing current ways of thinking and stimulating new questions from fresh perspectives.  They are also powerful science engagement tools that have the capacity to broaden the audience with which scientists connect.

This is an event organised by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis to launch the photo exhibition Focus on Photosynthesis, which will be on display from the 1st to the 16th of November.

The exhibition contains the 15 finalists of a photography competition, aimed at telling the story of the Centre, showing the people behind the Centre’s research and sparking people’s curiosity in plant science and photosynthesis. It reveals the intriguing world of photosynthesis, taking the viewer from the microscopic realm inside leaves to the hot, humid sorghum fields of Queensland.

Moderated by Cris Kennedy, this discussion with five speakers from diverse disciplines, aims to celebrate images and their power to inspire wonder, stir curiosity, and peer into hidden worlds.

Speakers:

Moderator: Cris Kennedy

Cris is a cultural critic and writer and longtime innovator of community arts and community engagement projects. Cris Kennedy has built a large network and experience in communication for science and the arts. He worked for the National Film and Sound Archive in education and engagement and has been, among other projects, programming the Canberra International Film Festival. Cris is currently the Director of Visitor Experience at the Department of Parliamentary Service.

Dr Vivien Rolland, CSIRO

Dr. Vivien (Viv) Rolland is a micro-imaging expert with a background in molecular and cellular biology, and a focus on engineering better food and fibre crops. Viv is particularly interested in understanding the dynamics of cell walls, which underpin plant growth, architecture and yield. Viv also manages the CSIRO Black Mountain MicroImaging Centre (BMIC), a Centre which provides expertise, training, and state-of-the art micro-imaging equipment to enable impactful scientific discoveries. Viv is an Associate Researcher of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis and his image Weather report inside a plant cell, won the second prize in the Competition.

Dr Erica Seccombe, ANU College of Science and ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences

Erica is a visual artist based in Canberra. Her practice spans from traditional and photographic print media and drawing to experimental digital platforms using frontier scientific visualisation software. Since 2006 she has been an artist and resident researcher at the ANU Department of Applied Mathematics and Vizlab, NCI.  Erica’s work is exhibited nationally and internationally, and her work is included in private and public collections. Erica’s PhD GROW: experiencing Nature in the Fifth Dimension is a practice-led research project investigating time-resolved (4D) micro-X-ray Computed Tomography through immersive stereoscopic digital projection installations and 3D printing.

She is currently a lecturer in Foundation Studies at the ANU School of Art & Design, teaches for The Centre for Art History and Art Theory, and is the Convener of Graduate Studies Coursework for Visual Arts, Design and Art History and Curatorship.

Florence Danila, RSB and CoETP

Florence’s current research is on comparison of transport mechanisms between rice (C₃) and setaria (C₄) plants with focus on plasmodesmata. This work will involve the implementation of advanced techniques such as electron microscopy and 3D imaging.

Her areas of expertise include large-scale generation and high-throughput anatomical screen of sorghum mutant population, western blotting and gas exchange measurement in transgenic rice population, and fluorescence microscopy techniques for immunolocalisation work in rice and maize.

Florence holds a Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology; University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City (2007) and a Master of Science in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology; University of the Philippines, Los Baños, Laguna (2013).

She was awarded the Lee Rice Foundation Scholarship and the ANU HDR Merit Scholarship.

Two of her images were finalists at the Focus on Photosynthesis competition and her image Plasmodesmatal connections within a grass leaf won a highly commended mention.

Dr Florian Busch, ANU Research School of Biology and ARC CoE for Translational Photosynthesis.

Florian’s research focuses on identifying genetic attributes underlying a strong positive growth response to elevated CO₂ in Eucalyptus species, Modelling photosynthetic processes on the leaf level and linking photosynthetic CO₂ assimilation to photosynthetic electron transport. His interests center on how the environment influences a range of related processes from the photosynthetic light reactions to the Calvin-Benson cycle and stomatal physiology.

He recently co-authored a paper showing how 3D imaging opens a door to fascinating leaf complexity. His image Questioning the wonders of leaves, light and gases won the first prize in the Focus on photosynthesis competition.

Dr Melanie Bagg, Director of Communications and Outreach, Australian Academy of Science.

Melanie is a PhD qualified medical research scientist turned professional science communicator. She is currently the Director of Communications and Outreach at the Australian Academy of Science. A passionate champion for Australian science, Melanie has extensive experience in senior communications, fundraising, media and outreach roles within the not-for-profit and higher education sectors. In 2016, Melanie was awarded the Unsung Hero of SA Science Communication for her commitment to translating complex science into something we can all understand

About the exhibition

Focus on Photosynthesis opens our eyes to the hidden, fascinating world of plant research. It reveals the intriguing world of photosynthesis, taking the viewer from the microscopic realm inside leaves to the hot, humid sorghum fields of Queensland.

The images of this exhibition, are the result of a photographic competition organised by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Translational Photosynthesis, aimed at telling the story of the Centre, showing the people behind the Centre’s research and sparking people’s curiosity in plant science and photosynthesis.

The exhibition contains the 15 finalists of the competition, printed in a large format as well as some added series submitted to the competition. The images were selected based on their impact and storytelling properties. Some of the images were produced for purely scientific purposes, but when taken out of that context they became intriguing and striking images, that capture the attention of a much wider audience.

Click here to look at all the submitted images for the Focus on Photosynthesis competition