Art and Science Converge: The Periodic Table Printmaking Project

2008-01-10T17:04:00Z

Ever imagined a periodic table of artwork? It's not a fantasy! Etsy user AzureGrackle coordinated a periodic table art project, outlined on her blog and visible in the Periodic Table flickr group. According to her site, "Ninety-six printmakers of all experience levels, have joined together to produce 118 prints in any medium; woodcut, linocut, monotype, etching, lithograph, silkscreen, or any combination. The end result is a periodic table of elements intended to promote both science and the arts."

We talked to AzureGrackle and got a little background on this fascinating project.

How did this project originate?
It came from an afternoon last March when I spread all my prints out on the floor of my apartment and thought "Gee, they look like the periodic table." I was chatting with my friend/coproduction artist Nathan Cannon of Procyonidae and he dared me to see if I could do it for real. So we set up the basic guidelines and sent out a call for artists. I posted it on Etsy and the BarenForum.org (a group for printmakers, primarily woodcut artists), and it spread from there.

How many Etsy users contributed to the project?
I'll have to go through my list and check and get back to you on this one, but a lot!*

How did you decide who to include?
I wanted it to be as inclusive as possible, so there are some very experienced artists and some who had never done a print before, and everything in between.

What was the intention behind this project?
The original intention was just to see what would happen. Now I hope to get it published as a coffee table book, datebook, calendar, poster, deck of flash cards, and also shown in a gallery. So many people have told me they wished they had something like this when they were in high school chemistry class. This visual interpretation makes it easier to remember information about the elements, gives you a story or a tidbit or fact to hang onto. I know far more about a lot elements now than I did a year ago or in 10th grade.

Anything else you'd like to add?
The secondary inspiration for the project comes from my Mom. She just retired from teaching high school chemistry and physics for 30 years. While I never wanted to be a scientist, she made learning about science fun and approachable because her love for it is infectious. Knowing how the world around you works makes life so much richer. So the connection of art and science is an important one to me.

*All 63 Etsy users involved:

procyonidae, azuregrackle, mlee, paperedtogether, histand, kshanks, dcutter, beeczarcardsandgifts, carenloebelfried, stacysaurusshop, cpierson, tatsuko, osoazuldesign, moonshinebluebirds, pygletwhispers, camillastacey, ellenshipley, nydampress, fustian, spindlecatstudio, pistolespress, anniefitt, bbmowery, spponergregory, lookability, estasketch, floatingpalace, serendipityartist, fiskandfern, readdevine, sarahridgley, papastudios, goodfeets, wingedlion, tepimade, tofunutloaf, Mizudesigns, Crumpart, rosevasquezcastillo, pillowhead, spoonergregory, novembermoon, redhydrant, spudnikpress, heftart, vizart, sweetanniejeanne, lynnm, mummus, abitabite, piebirdpress, bluesnailpapers, ghostdeer, meringue, smushie, muttsywonder, almapottery, amyb13, gneural, magprint, knitsonya, deequeen, anadecora

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Art and Science Converge: The Periodic Table Printmaking Project