Art of Science Contest

The Art of Science contest is on hiatus this year and is expected to return in 2027.

Established in 2021 and inspired by the aesthetically striking data sets curated in the Library’s Research Data Collections repository, the contest invites UC San Diego’s scientific community to share the artistry and impact of their work. Its goal is to spark curiosity among the general public through engaging research communication and demonstrate how research can help address some of society’s most pressing challenges.

Each year, undergraduates, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and project scientists submit images captured during their research process, representing disciplines such as oceanography, climate science, neurobiology, synthetic biology, pharmacology, cognitive science, materials science, geophysics, planetary physics, urban studies and planning, music, and engineering. The contest emphasizes inclusivity by showcasing work from across the academic spectrum, aligning with UC San Diego’s commitment to fostering research skills early in students’ careers and cultivating a vibrant and diverse scientific community.

“Participating in this contest has been a rewarding opportunity to share the knowledge and observations that emerge from our research every day,” said Greg Rouse, Professor of Marine Biology and Curator at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and 2025 Art of Science winner in the Judges’ Award, Faculty/Project Scientist Participant Category. “These images are compelling and ideally engage the public to find out about the science behind them.”

About the Contest

Prizes and Recognition

Each winning image in the four participant categories (undergraduate, graduate, postdoc, and faculty) will receive a cash prize of $75. Additionally, there's an open voting category where the winning image is chosen by members of our Triton community and the public.
Winning images will be exhibited at the Geisel Library exhibit gallery.
Judge-selected images:
- One winner from each participant category (undergraduate, graduate, postdoc, and faculty/project scientist) will receive a $75 prepaid Visa card.
- Up to three honorable mentions (no monetary award).
Open Voting winner (crowd-nominated favorite): $75 prepaid Visa card.

What Can Be Submitted

Undergraduates: Submissions can be based on research conducted during course, laboratory, or formal research projects.

Graduate students, postdocs, faculty, and project scientists: Submissions should be original research outputs based on original research conducted in residence at or in affiliation with UC San Diego.

The contest welcomes a wide range of visual submissions, including: photographs, microscope images, illustrations, visual depictions of complex datasets, the result of modeling and simulation, combined images, and creative representations of your work. Images may be modified to enhance their aesthetic, such as combining multiple images into one artistic work.

For instance, those whose work is highly theoretical or conceptually challenging may wish to design a novel visual metaphor to make it more accessible.
Photographs may be of instrumentation, apparati, devices or other objects used in your scientific investigation.
Photographs of original art or three-dimensional physical models or representations are also eligible as long as they depict your original science or mathematics research.

Submission Guidelines

Include a title, a one-line caption, and a description that intrigues the audience, inspires curiosity about the research, and communicates the science clearly and concisely in language accessible to non-scientists.
Accepted file formats: jpg, gif, tif, or png.
Image size: Either the width or the height must be at least 2160 pixels.
Images cannot contain any personally identifiable information.
UC San Diego and UC San Diego affiliated undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral and faculty researchers are eligible to participate.
One submission per participant or team.

Judging

A panel of judges will review all eligible entries; judges may include faculty members, senior academic staff, Visual Arts graduate students, and administrators.

Evaluation Criteria

Image: aesthetic excellence (captivating, stunning, and/or otherwise visually interesting) as well as scientific or technical interest.
Caption: the one-line caption should tantalize audiences, inspiring them to learn more about the research. It should use clear, concise language that is accessible to non-scientists.

A small group of UC San Diego Library administrators will tally votes and, in cases where the judge’s nominations do not coalesce around a clear winner, they will select one from among the top candidates.

Open Voting

Anyone with a PollUnit Art of Science contest link can vote for a single favorite image. The image with the most number of “likes” will be designated as the Open Voting winner.

Winning images are exhibited in Spotlight, the Library’s digital exhibit platform. All submissions will be preserved in the Library's Digital Collections repository.

Please direct questions about the contest to Abigail Pennington at apennington@ucsd.edu.

Image credit:
Current page: Gregory Rouse, "The By-the-Wind Sailor, Velella," 2024 contest winner.
Previous page, "Explore" section: Adi Khen, "Bigeye Octopus Suckers," 2021, Open Voting Winner.