The Art of Science on Google Arts & Culture
Remarkable natural history illustrations from Museums Victoria between 1700 and 1850: Rumphius to Gould.
The Art of Science
Animals inspire our imaginations
Whether they fly, swim, crawl, wriggle or walk, we are endlessly fascinated with the creatures of our world.
Over the last 300 years their dazzling diversity has been described with increasing precision through scientific illustrations.
Museum Victoria's archive of artworks, working drawings and rare books traces the development of scientific art and provides a glimpse into a world of uncommon beauty.
The Art of Science was an exhibition developed by Museums Victoria that travelled to Mornington, Ballarat, Adelaide, Mildura, Sale, Sydney and the Melbourne Museum between 2012–15.
Online exhibitions
Scientific Art in Victoria, Australia on Google Arts & Culture
Remarkable natural history illustrations from Museums Victoria between 1850 and 1900.
Butterfly eggs of Victoria on Google Arts & Culture
A book by Ross Field on Victorian butterflies (published by Museum Victoria) took images of the eggs of each species, many for the first time.
Get the book
Written by John Kean, The Art of Science presents the best of Museums Victoria's remarkable collection of natural history artworks.
Based on the museum's collection of rare books, field sketches, art works and taxonomic studies, the book features some of the most exquisite, rare and important illustrations of flora and fauna ever created.
Available for purchase from the Melbourne Museum shop and all good bookstores nationally.
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Our addiction to plastic
Lifting the lid on plastic: the good, the bad and the ugly.
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Why the 2010s were the decade of the peacock spider
How disruptors and digital technology led to a frenzy of scientific discovery.
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Forest Secrets
At the heart of the museum is a piece of Victoria's mountain landscape with tall eucalypts, ferns, rare plants and wildlife. Delve in to the secrets of our Forest Galley.