Artist Statement:

“Discovery in bloom” appears as one large circular blossom, composed of many smaller flowers or cells. At the center is an organic, almost living and growing representation of an iconic symbol of evolutionary theory, the structure of Charles Darwin’s 1837 “tree of life,” also composed of these smaller “cell-flowers.” Darwin’s original sketch illustrated his theory of evolution by natural selection, which became the unifying principle in biology and the theoretical underpinning of vast bodies of research in the life sciences. While Darwin’s tree is now considered an incomplete depiction of the course of evolution, his theory and sketch were the conceptual origin of almost two centuries of subsequent scientific discovery and innovation.

Connecting with the extended branches of Darwin’s tree and forming the surrounding bloom are large concentric circles, which evoke the phylogenetic trees that can be rendered through more complex and contemporary approaches in the life sciences like bioinformatics and comparative genomics. The circles are colored in sections to depict related branch points with common ancestors, mapping roughly onto the related species in Darwin’s tree in the center. “Cell-flowers” appear throughout the piece, sometimes adjacent to the main structures or orbiting between them, and sometimes in pairs or clusters as if they have recently divided. The cellular aspect of the piece’s building blocks points to the significant role of cell biology in modern life sciences, while the overall blossom structure, the branched tree within it, and the component flowers are a nod to the significant role of plant science in the Bond Life Science Center.

By placing Darwin’s original tree in the center of the surrounding circular phylogenetic trees, this piece also suggests the evolution and expansion of scientific ideas and technology over time, a continuum of theories and approaches spanning the past, the present, and the future. Discoveries do not occur in a vacuum—they develop in the context of a legacy of great ideas and innovations. As scientists build on the achievements and influential ideas of the past, they simultaneously lay the groundwork for future approaches and illuminate the path for future understanding.