4pm EST, Friday February 14th

Drawing Connections: How Art Makes Science Come Alive

Artists Matt Cushman, Emily Hromi, Guin Thompson, and Orion Wakeman will discuss how they convey scientific ideas through drawings, paintings, and other types of visual art. Hosted by Jack Daleske of the Grand Rapids Public Museum.

Matthew Cushman is a technical illustrator, artist, and graphic designer working in the Grand Rapids area. After receiving a degree in Technical Illustration from Ferris State University in 1992, he quickly got involved working with movie studios creating dynamic cutaway posters of popular spaceships to help expand their narratives. His cutaway illustrations for iconic franchises like Star Trek, Star Wars, and The Orville have found homes across the globe. For 25+ years, he has been the principle at Cushdesign, Inc., engaging in many creative and diverse projects for his clients.

Emily Hromi is a freelance medical illustrator, visual science communicator, and multimedia artist based in Grand Rapids. She earned her BFA in Life Sciences Illustration from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2014. Since 2019 Emily has supported dozens of clients worldwide with medical illustration, science graphics, and other creative services. She is an active member of the Association of Medical Illustrators and various other professional organizations merging art, science, and technology.

Bio of E. Guin Thompson forthcoming. 

Orion Wakeman is an emerging fine artist and illustrator from Grand Rapids, MI. He graduated from Calvin University ‘24 with a double major Bachelor of Fine Arts and interdisciplinary science. He has worked in environmental restoration, landscaping, illustration, and leading art workshops. Fostering the deep ties between science and art as disciplines is a special interest of his, and he has received grants from the Michigan Space Grant Consortium to share creative skills with STEM researchers.