Scientific and Medical Illustration

© Copyright Alessandra Kelley

I trained in scientific illustration with Zbigniew T. Jastrzebski of the Field Museum of Natural History and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. It's an exacting art, and one that I enjoy. Inquiries are welcome.

Nasal passages, sinuses and throat of a child Graphite on paper I drew this graphite rendering of the internal anatomy of a child's nasal passages, sinuses, and throat, for "Darwinian Dentistry Part 2: Early Childhood Nutrition, Dentofacial Development and Chronic Disease," by Kevin L. Boyd, M.Sc., DDS, Journal of the American Orthodontic Society, March/April 2012.
Layers of the Sun Pen and ink on paper	This was one of numerous pen-and-ink illustrations I did for a physics book, Three Steps to the Universe: From the Sun to Black Holes to the Mystery of Dark Matter, by Richard and David Garfinkle, published by the University of Chicago Press. Although it's not typical of my work, I enjoy bringing across physics concepts in a clear and understandable way. I consider it a repayment to George Gamow for my childhood understanding of physics.
Hippotigris shoshonensis, a fossil zebra Colored pencils on black paper	For drawing fossils and bones, such as this extinct American zebra, I find the richness of colored pencils on black paper conveys their beauty better than just about any other medium. This is one of numerous studies, illustrations and paintings I have made from the fabulous collections of the Field Museum of Natural History, which is a tremendous resource in Chicago.
African violet, deconstructed Gouache on paper

Bubo scandiacus Colored pencil on black paper

Another study from the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, this is a little drawing of the skull of a snowy owl, Bubo scandiacus.

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This web site, and especially this page, are dedicated to the memory of Zbigniew Tadeusz Jastrzebski, a fine senior scientific illustrator at the Field Museum of Natural History, and a merciless and talented teacher. I took his Scientific Illustration classes nights at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago for three years. He was truly terrifying (My friends dubbed him one of nature's Mean Old Kung Fu Masters), brooked no nonsense and expected every student to work with everything they had. But he was also humorous and compassionate once you got to know him. He was born in Poland in 1940, a very bad time, and learned art at the rigorous academies of Eastern Europe. He and his mother emigrated to the United States in the 1960s, and he soon took up work as a scientific illustrator for the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, where he produced thousands of illustrations. He also did commercial illustration, and taught classes at the SAIC and other area colleges. He wrote an excellent book, Scientific Illustration: A Guide for the Beginning Artist, which is out of print but available. When I read it, I can still hear his deep voice, his thick Polish accent, and his slightly idiosyncratic grammar. He was one of my best teachers ever, and a good friend. He died suddenly at his drafting table at the age of sixty, far too young.

Any friend or student of Zbigniew Jastrzebski who wishes to swap anecdotes will find me a sympathetic listener.