The Team

Assoc. Prof. Karen L. Martinez

I hold a PhD degree in Biophysics and am currently Associate Professor at University of Copenhagen, where I take part to the education of students in Nanoscience and lead a research group in Bionanoscience with interdisciplinary projects combining cell biology, biochemistry, biophysics and nanomaterials. With a continuous will to explore new territories, I have been fascinated by the opportunities offered by nanomaterials to explore biological samples.

In addition to my academic activities, I am passionate about creative and artistic activities, including photography, floral art, gastronomy. Thanks to this experience, I believe that looking at scientific data from a pure esthetic perspective is a good foundation to learn how to “think out of the box” and evaluate results with a new eye. My motivation behind this event is to offer the public the opportunity to see the world with new glasses and to give an opportunity to scientists to contribute to an original event.

Asst.Prof. Thor C. Møller

I have a master's degree in nanoscience and a PhD degree in life sciences. Currently, I am a postdoc in molecular pharmacology at the Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology at University of Copenhagen. I am interested in the details of how the very important class of receptors called G protein-coupled receptors function at a molecular level. Fluorescence microscopy is a great way to study this while experiencing the beauty of the microscopic world. In a previous project I imaged fluorescent receptors in cultured neurons. Sometimes I searched for an hour alone in the dark microscopy room without finding neurons with fluorescent receptors. Then suddenly a bright axon would appear and I would follow it for what seemed like several meters. Suddenly a beautiful dendritic arbor full of branches and spines would appear and that experience would be worth the entire search. I hope that with ARTiS we can help bring these kinds of experiences to a broad audience

MSc. Fátima Sánchez Barreiro

Two years ago I joined the ARTiS initiative when Karen passed on her enthusiasm for art in science to me. Since then I have become increasingly interested in this particular vehicle for science communication. As I transitioned from a rather naive master student to a still-quite-naive PhD student being part of ARTiS all along, I realised how powerful visual communication is. Now I totally share the thrill in building links between scientists and the rest of society through artistic depictions. Apart from exploring this creative art-in-science world, I am a PhD student at the Department of Biology at the University of Copenhagen. My work focuses on studying the process of extinction in endangered species from a population genomics perspective, and specifically I am working on populations of African rhinos.

Louise August Nielsen

I study nanoscience at the University of Copenhagen. I find the nanoworld interesting, especially manipulation of nanoscale objects; the early stages of nanoscale assembly, and the possibilities of molecular building blocks.
To express work and research through imaging and art is not only fun but also educational and something I find to be an interesting way to achieve interests from many different areas, including people outside scientific research.

Rasmus Dalsgaard Schlosser

Physical objects have appeal due to their obvious realness, they are grounded and present. Paintings, sculptures, and reliefs are real to the senses, they can be understood in effect of their existence. Scientific presentation often cannot possess this quality and its details turn abstract. ARTiS is an opportunity to display aesthetic beauty stemming from often obscure and surprising sources.

MSc. Nicolai Vanggaard Bærentsen

I am Nicolai, soon-to-be educated cand.scient. with an interest in volunteer projects and science, which is why ARTiS is such a good fit. I was also on board last year and hope to continue the fun experience of teaching people about science and the beautiful, often unseen, parts on the smaller scale of the world. My own field of research is bionanoscience and as such, I'm very much used to observing both living and dead things through various types of microscopes. I hope to inspire more people to submit their beautiful science to our project, and that more people will see the beautiful the art in science.

Ph.D. Yanfang Li

I obtained my PhD in Nanoscience, focusing on fabrication of biomimetic polymer scaffolds and their application in tissue engineering and drug delivery. Later as a postdoc, I worked on nanostructured arrays for intracellular signal sensing and their interaction with biological samples. Having been working in the interdisciplinary research area for years, I have seen many beautiful things of science in nano- and micro-scales, which I would like to share with my family, my friend, and the broad public. Artis provides a most directly way to diffuse scientific knowledge to public, and the understanding of public might provide scientists a new horizon.

Cecilie August Jensen

My name is Cecilie and I study biochemistry at the University of Copenhagen. I like the idea of communicating the exciting results and findings of science through Art. I Think it is a great way to catch the interest of both students and kids.

MSc. Anne Friis-Holm Egfjord

I hold a master degree in biology from University of Copenhagen. The focus during my degree has been within genetics, cell biology and human physiology, trying to fit the small pieces into a bigger picture. Looking at human cells in light microscopy, one day it hit me how fascinating it is that we are all build of trillions of these tiny units, and most people don’t even know how our own building blocks – cells - look like. Scientists get to see the world in ways that are hidden from the naked eye. In a way I think scientists and artists are much alike, they want to understand and explore the world from new angles and are interested in finding or creating something new. I think a combination of these two disciplines is an intriguing way to not only show science to the public but also increase the interest for science in general.

MSc. Abishek Wadhwa

I am an Msc. Pharmaceutical Sciences student from India. I am a volunteer for the Art in Science program since I find the concept of communicating science using art as a medium to be exceedingly interesting. I have deep respect for art and I am a poetry author myself. Quoting John Keats, “A thing of beauty is a joy for ever”, I hope our exhibition manages to inspire smiles and new brain cells among our audience. The benefits of being a volunteer for ARTiS are highly rewarding, from meeting new people and honing my project management skills to the gratification of bringing an exhibition to fruition. I am grateful for the opportunity, and I am very excited to work with my enthusiastic team.

B.Math. Victor

My name is Victor, and I am a first-year student of mathematics at the University of Copenhagen who has decided to join ARTiS as I myself have benefited immensely from science outreach programs in the past. Science and especially modern scientific research is inherently abstract and is often only able to be appreciated by a select few, who have specialized knowledge of the subject. I am therefore looking forward to participating in furthering the ARTiS approach of doing science communication through art and imagery.

MSc. Sylvester H Langvad

When you are reading this, hopefully I have finished my Master's Degree in nanoscience and mastered the art of controlling live neurons with light, an art that includes shocking unfortunate cells with electricity, shooting them with lasers or drowning them in toxins. Despite this loving treatment, these cells provide a plethora of beautiful images too beautiful to only be confined on a hard-drive in a basement of Copenhagen University. It is my hope that ARTiS can be a platform that spreads this kind of hidden beauty and peculiar imagery found in the natural world. When I'm not committing my body and attention to science, you'd find me swing-dancing, eating ice-cream or laughing at a poorly delivered pun.

Ph.D. Elena Longhin

I am a PhD student in Structural Biology of membrane proteins at the University of Copenhagen. I grew up in Venice, Italy, and moved to Parma for my studies. There, I took a MSc in Biotechnology which allowed me to pursue my interest for biological systems and the techniques to understand them. Then, I moved to Copenhagen and started my PhD in Structural Biology, which involves visualizing 3D structures of various proteins. Looking at the protagonists of the mechanisms that keep the cell alive, as well as other natural structures, made me realize that scientific techniques can help us unveiling the artistic beauty within the natural world that surrounds us. Therefore, I believe that ARTiS mission to make this inner beauty public is of great importance and I am happy to be part of it.