iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 15/08/2026

Bonus: An illustration by @daisychung.bsky.social —part of a graphic that I art directed for a 2020 @sciam.bsky.social article on Elpistostege watsoni— appeared on screen in the formal presentation for tourists 🤩. You can see the full graphic here: www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-... #sciart

Photo of screen with a fish fin anatomy illustration projected on it. A national park guide next to the screen directs attention to a detail within the illustration with a pointer.

020

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 15/08/2026

Such a treat to visit Parc national de Miguasha today. Pretty amazing to see Devonian fossils in a museum setting, then pop outside and walk along the riverside cliffs from which they were unearthed.

Museum case holding a prepared fossil of E. watsoni. The full length of the fish is present, assembled like a puzzle from about 20 pieces of rock.

View down a wide river. Small boulders make up the shore in the foreground. Cliffs are visible in the background.

160

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 19/05/2026

Happy June @sciam.bsky.social issue launch day! As always, thanks to the artists who make it all possible. (Scroll through the 🧵 for a #sciart lagerstätten.) I'm THRILLED with Violet Frances' fresh take on quantum computing for the cover. Check out more of Violet’s work here: www.violetfrances.com

1152

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 14/04/2026

Happy May @sciam.bsky.social issue launch day! Just one more full issue as acting design chief for me, as I'm thrilled to report that Maria Amador has joined the magazine as chief art director! // cover illustration by Maria Corte, animation by me www.scientificamerican.com/issue/sa/202... 🧪#sciart

170

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/03/2026

Happy April issue launch day! (My fourth as acting design chief @sciam.bsky.social). Two covers this month: kids for the newsstand & dark matter for subscribers. I’m particularly excited about Chad Hagen’s modernist galaxy art, designed w/some of my favorite vintage SciAm covers in mind. 🧪 #SciArt

35410

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/02/2026

Happy March issue launch day! My wild ride as acting design chief at @sciam.bsky.social continues. 🧪 #Sciart // Many thanks to the fabulous artists who make it all possible, including....

Photo of an issue of Scientific American on a wood surface flanked by a plant. The cover illustration is a woman in an urban scene surrounded by AI-enabled tech. Coverline is “Life in the Age of AI.”

2273

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/02/2026

If you’re in DC, stop by the AAAS building for a really neat exhibit that showcases a decade of visuals in Science magazine 🤩 www.aaas.org/programs/art... Kudos to Beth Rakouskas and the Science Visuals team! 🧪#SciArt 📊

Exhibit intro text on a wall: “Invisible, Novel, and Complex”

Science cover featuring a genome dataviz

View along a gallery wall featuring a series of scientist portraits

View along a gallery wall featuring a series of science graphics.

1298

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 20/01/2026

It’s been a wild ride at work. I’ve been stretching my page design & editorial illustration art direction muscles during an interval of expanded duties as acting design chief (in addition to my feature graphics editing responsibilities).

1180

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 19/01/2026

Eyes and brain awash with imagery related to math, here at Rigorous Illustrations—Their creation and evaluation for mathematical research (a workshop hosted by the Institut Henri Poincaré). The blackboard in the break room does not disappoint. indico.math.cnrs.fr/event/13124/

Blackboard with equations and drawings of mathematical concepts—including Penrose Triangles. The ledge under the board holds chalk and an abandoned coffee cup.

171

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 31/12/2025

Overheard while perusing LA ON THE MOVE exhibit by @datavandals.bsky.social at Union Station today: “p22 is on here!” “Our home is on this map.” “Did I tell you about the time a hawk swooped me?” “What? No baby opossums?” Lovely hearing and seeing people engage with data in a public space. 📊 #SciArt

Billboard-style painting with title LA ON THE MOVE. In the background, an art deco ceiling and chandelier is visible.

Bold and colorful display with red-tailed hawk paintings and factoids

Detail of a map made of satellite images. Several different animal icons dot the surface. A finger points to a mountain lion icon near Vernon.

150

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 21/11/2025

Such a satisfying museum day today. Lots of art/natural world parallels. Left: Fluorite with sphalerite (Peabody museum); Right: Untitled oil painting by Mark Rothko, 1954 (Yale Art Gallery).

Glowing mineral in cube form with vibrant orange, purple and red coloration.

Ethereal soft geometric painting with orange, purple and red fields.

1110

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 10/08/2025

It was such a treat to see Kapi in person for an artist’s talk and reception for her “The Plasticene” collection today. Please excuse my poor photography of her work below, and check out proper representations on her website here ➡️ www.kalliopimonoyios.com/home/the-pla... #SciArt

Photo of a framed piece of artwork. The overall impression is that of a cut and polished agate stone, with bands of color building inward. Upon closer inspection, it’s clear that the bands are stitched together with thread. Further inspection reveals that the colorful bands are made of thin plastic materials, including food bags.

Poster with this text: Kalliopi Monoyios - Hope in the Plasticene - July 23 to August 24 - Wesleyan Potters

090

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 03/08/2025

Then read a companion article that focuses on increasing the joy and purposefulness that comes with embracing sustainable fashion as both art form & practicality. It includes this handy taxonomy of textile fiber types. #SustainableFashion #SciArt #Fashion www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-...

Chart breaks down textile fiber types into 2 main categories: Natural (plant and animal products) and human-made fibers (naturally-derived polymers and synthetic polymers)

List of natural fibers broken down into two categories (plant-based and animal-based), with sources and examples listed. For example, “Bast (obtained from stems) includes flax/linen, hemp, jute, ramie, and some bamboo textiles.

List of human-made fibers broken down into two categories; naturally-derived polymers (chemically transformed polymers from natural raw materials) and synthetic polymers (made from petrochemical-derived plastics). For example, cellulose-based naturally derived polymers include acetate, triacetate, lyocell, rayon, modal, viscose, cupro, and bamboo.

081

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 03/08/2025

As fashion attention shifts to fall, are you struggling with sustainability concerns amidst the impulse to freshen up your wardrobe? @sciam.bsky.social has you covered. Click through for a thorough visual guide that will make you a more informed consumer. www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-be...

A chart maps the stages of clothing production—and beyond. The categories are: design and concept, fiber production, yarn and fabric production, textile production, consumption, and end of life.

1239

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 03/06/2025

I'm incredibly excited about participating in the Visualizing Resilience conference this week in Finland. Looks like June 6 streaming tickets are still available for folks that can’t make it in person: vizknowledge.aalto.fi/index.html

Screenshot text: Our world itself has changed, as has our understanding of it, its processes and inner systems -- but never before has the pace of this change been so fast. In the context of this acceleration, we want to explore the concept of resilience -- the ability to bounce back, to endure, to adapt. What does this process of transformation look like? What can we gain from it? And how can information design help us see clearer?

120

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 25/05/2025

Reefs of Time by @lisasgardiner.bsky.social arrived ahead of its Jun10 pub date.🤩 I knew I wouldn’t see my fellow Smith College geology major on campus this weekend at reunion, so I spent time with her new title at our old haunt (the science building 🧪🪨🪸) instead. Congrats on your latest book, Lisa!

Hand holding up a book titled _Reefs of Time: What fossils reveal about coral survival_ in front of a brick academic building with “Burton Hall” chiseled above the door.

0181

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 04/05/2025

When our kitty died a few months ago 💔 we commissioned a portrait from artist Kat Corrigan. We hung it yesterday, by her climbing tree. (Now a home to plants, since I needed something alive in the corner.) Kat was so kind. Highly recommend. katcorrigan.com

Square painting of a gray cat with yellow eyes in spare, bold and expressive brushstrokes. The painting is on an orange wall, next to a tree branch supporting shelves. One shelf holds a blooming Maranta Leuconeura plant.

1291

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/04/2025

Untitled (Your body is a battleground) by Barbara Kruger, 1989 @thebroadmuseum.bsky.social

Large black and white silkscreen (112 x 112 inches) straight-on view of a woman’s face, the left half in positive and the right half in negative. Three strips of red are painted across the middle, with these words in white italics sans serif type: Your body / is a / battleground.

130

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/04/2025

Today was a good day for art viewing @thebroadmuseum.bsky.social // Mirror #1 by Roy Lichtenstein (left), Portrait of Malak Lunsford II by Kehinde Wiley (right)

Oval painted with black and white dots and wavy lines, portraying a mirror in graphic pop art style.

Oval frame holding a full length portrait of a contemporary Black man in red pants and a yellow shirt against a delicate snowy landscape background with flowers and birds.

140

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 01/02/2025

Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World (Without a Bullhorn) by Omkari L. Williams www.omkariwilliams.com/the-book

Screenshot of book promotion page for Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World (Without a Bullhorn) by Omkari L. Williams. It includes a colorful and bold book cover alongside this text: “In this age of activism, many people who don't necessarily want to lead a movement or join a protest march are left wondering,
"How can I make an impact?" In Micro Activism, former political consultant turned activism coach Omkari L. Williams shares her expertise in empowering introverts and highly sensitive people to help others find the activist roles that will be most satisfying and effective for them.”

172

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 27/11/2024

Grateful to Federica Fragapane for lending her talents to the magazine for a graphic on gender equality. 📊 (Data source: UN-Women and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs) www.scientificamerican.com/article/see-...

Photo of a portion of a magazine page. Title of story is “Progress toward Gender Equality.” Chart shows levels and trends of the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goal 5.

1346

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 17/11/2024

I learned lots about mucosal immunity while working on @sutherlandphd.bsky.social’s article “New Nasal Vaccines Offer Better Protection from COVID and Flu—No Needle Required.” Here’s a peek at how the graphics plan developed. www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-... 🧪🐡 #SciArt

45111

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 14/10/2024

Our current intern @zanewolf.bsky.social has been doing stellar work. Lots of fast-turnaround 📊 news graphics in collaboration w/intern manager @unamandita.bsky.social, and a large piece (from research to execution) for a feature article in the Oct issue 🤩 www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-...

A matrix showing the number of deaths between 1998 and 2023 by age (less than one year old, age one, two, three, four, five, six or more, and unknown), context (Forgotten, Intentionally Left, Gained Access, and Unknown) and total by age and by context. Deaths are highest in the “less than one year old” age group and among the “Forgotten” category, with numbers increasing in the “Gained Access” category for older children.

Line chart shows the estimated monthly excess deaths linked to tropical storms and hurricanes from 1950 to around 2015. The vertical axis represents excess deaths per month, ranging from zero to 12, 500, while the horizontal axis spans the years from 1950 to 2015. Multiple colored lines represent individual cyclones colored by the decade in which they occurred, with thicker lines indicating hurricanes that reached Category 5 status. Key hurricanes such as Camille (1969), David (1979), Andrew (1992) and Katrina (2005) are labeled. A gray line marks cumulative excess mortality from all tropical cyclones in the preceding 172 months. The chart suggests that excess deaths can persist for up to 15 years after a storm.

Timeline of Apollo and Artemis programs, with mission details. The Apollo program included more than a dozen separate missions, but Artemis has condensed its initial stage into four main flights: an uncrewed test flight of the rocket, followed by a planned human trip around the moon and then two crewed landings.

2338

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 13/10/2024

I was sad to miss @sadieding.bsky.social’s book event at possiblefuturesbooks.com a few weeks ago. But I was lucky enough to snag one of the few remaining signed copies of Do I Know You at the shop today. Looking forward to diving in!

Photo of a book on a wood bench. Text on cover: “Do I Know You? A Faceblind Reporter’s Journey into the Science of Sight, Memory, and Imagination // Sadie Dingfelder”

030

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 13/09/2024

😍 I LOVE flipping through old issues. Many of the amazing examples in the thread below also appeared in the English-language edition. Tip: credits in the magazine used to be collected in a box near the table of contents. This chart is by Jerome Kuhl for “The Choice of Technology” by Wassily Leontief

Input-output model of an economy traces the flow of goods and services among sectors in a chart that could be described as a brightly colored self-feeding Sankey diagram.

Screenshot of a box from a magazine page titled "The Illustrations," followed by a list of page numbers and artist names.

1164

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 16/07/2024

This article about a popular statistics game by @parshallison.bsky.social is mend-bending in the most satisfying way. www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-... And the lessons within go far beyond math. I love this excerpt in particular:

Screenshot with this text: When I ask vos Savant, the writer of the 1990 Parade column, what she thinks the enduring lesson of the Monty Hall dilemma is, her answer doesn’t involve competing theories in statistics. The puzzle, she says, is about humility. “It promotes a dandy demonstration of a human frailty,” vos Savant explains, “the disbelief that we could be wrong and the tenacity, sometimes aggrieved, with which we hold our earlier judgments, especially when we feel certain.”

030

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 21/02/2024

Snuck in a few adventures with my dad this week before the rain started again.

View from a peak in Joshua Tree, looking out over mountains and hills dotted with high desert vegetation. Blue sky with white clouds overhead. Figure in foreground wearing a pack, hat and hiking posts.

030

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 08/01/2024

I noticed a similar print to one of those in the yard today. (Quarter for scale.) Do you happen to know what it is? My guess is a fox or coyote. I don’t think it’s a dog because the prints track a pretty straight line, with one paw in the same spot as the other in many cases. But I’m not sure.

Paw print in snow, about 2.5x the length of the quarter included for scale. Four toes and a pad visible.

Paw print in snow, about 2.5x the length of the quarter included for scale. Four toes, nail marks and a pad visible.

A line of three prints in snow, in a near-straight line. Looks like each spot may have imprints from both a front and back paw.

110

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 31/12/2023

Chart Spark by @allitorban.bsky.social has given me a way to frame why I enjoy experimenting w/ TikTok. Making videos (for near-zero followers) are “mini-c” creative acts for me. (She cites work by Kaufman & Beghetto for the categories). Each animation is a fun low-stakes creative challenge #sciart

Photo of book sitting on textile. Text on cover: CHART SPARK, Harness your creativity in data communication to stand out and innovate, Alli Torban

1113

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 03/11/2023

😍 Excited to dive into @albertocairo.bsky.social ‘s latest book (fresh off the press). As soon as Mica Kitty lets me.

The Art of Insight book held closed on a flat surface by two gray cat paws.

1101

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 29/10/2023

Rereading one of my favorite books this weekend as a hat tip to artist Robert Irwin, who passed away this week at age 95. _Seeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees_ by Lawrence Weschler.

230

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 24/09/2023

Began the day watching pieces of an asteroid delivered to Earth by parachute. Then headed out for an Afrofuturism exhibit (part of 6thdimension.net) and spent some time with this gorgeous piece by Alisa Sikelianos-Carter www.alisasikelianoscarter.com/blackmoon#9

Cropped view of an art panel set upon a cement floor. Light and shadows on the black on black textured surface create the impression of a viewing a planet's surface from far above—evocative of a moonscape.

030

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 01/09/2023

So the natural history museum in Vienna, Austria leans a bit far in the taxidermy and cabinet direction for my tastes, but I kind of love that the main foyer features faux rock samples hanging from the wildly ornate ceiling instead of the usual articulated skeleton fare. 🪨

Looking up at a baroque ceiling with circular skylights framed by ornate arches, 7 large boulder-like rock samples float above your head.

Photo from mezzanine level, with a view of a highly decorative back and white floor below, arches ahead, and a circular dome above. Large boulders are suspended from the ceiling, hanging just above eye level.

000

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 28/08/2023

Spotted in the wild: an illustration by one of my favorite #SciArt folks—Mesa Schumacher—in a presentation by scientist Eddie Lee at the Complexity Science Hub (Vienna, Austria). I love presenters who include image credits. 🤩 eltrompetero.github.io/index.html 🧪🐡

Photo of a slide on a screen behind a presenter: green tree canopy illustrations (viewed from above) transition into mathematical drawings.

253

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 28/08/2023

Excited to join the Complexity Science Hub (Vienna, Austria) in this beautiful setting for the Visualizing Complexity Science Workshop. vis.csh.ac.at/vis-workshop-2023 🧪

View up a stairwell, painted white with natural light filtering through, contrasting with black wrought iron banister details.

1130

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 01/08/2023

My first art train (most are new-ish, with the exception of the grad school gouache monarch thrown in to earn the artist palette emoji) ... 🎨🖌️🐡 I'm nominating @lucyreadingikkanda.bsky.social @lisasgardiner.bsky.social @nearbirdstudios.bsky.social

Reentry schematic: capsule from Osiris-Rex spacecraft returns to earth via parachute.

$Diagram of two glasses holding red straws. One is simply offset slightly at water's edge, exhibiting positive refraction. In the other, the red straw angle appears to reverse, exhibiting negative refraction.$ Cross section of ocean, showing the epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, abyssal, and hadal zones, along with pressure at various levels.

Cross section of ocean, showing the epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, abyssal, and hadal zones, along with pressure at various levels.

Top view painting of a monarch butterfly on a blue panel.

0123

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 30/07/2023

Not only are they all slightly different, and numbered (almost certainly some sort of experiment in play), but they also have a such an anthropomorphic sculptural vibe. 😍 #SciArt

Close up of over thirty gourd-like white sculptural bird houses. Overall shape is similar for each. Upon closer inspection, it’s clear that door shape, position, overhangs and perches vary. Some are round, others tear-shaped, etc.

120

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 30/07/2023

Today I happened upon a Purple Martin apartment complex.

Seaside view. Tall grasses in foreground. Three posts are each holding around 30 white sculptural gourd-like bird houses. Each are numbered, and slightly different. Several small black birds hover around them.

140

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 20/07/2023

This week I learned that one of the objects in the opening scene of the classic 1977 Powers of Ten short film is an issue of Scientific American 😍

Screenshot from the film. View from above, looking down at two people sitting on a blanket on the grass. Objects include picnic foods, a few books, and an issue of Scientific American.

010

Jen Christiansen @jenchristiansen.com · 08/07/2023

Breaking the ice on this site with a cat photo. (After I settle in and listen for a bit I’ll be much more likely to post about science graphics.)

Gray shorthair cat with yellow eyes sitting on a gray chair with its ears perked up, looking at the camera.

1422