Science Museum unveils Quentin Blake science paintings
The Science Museum in London has opened a new exhibition of paintings by British illustrator Sir Quentin Blake that depict famous scientists and engineers and their inventions.
Blake, best known for his illustrations that brought Roald Dahl’s children’s stories to life, has painted objects and scientists represented in the museum’s mammoth collection.
Included in the collection, which is hung outside Wonderlab: The Equinor Gallery, are paintings of mathematician Ada Lovelace, environmental scientist James Lovelock and DNA pioneers Francis Crick and James Watson.
"Making drawings of real people from reference is rather different from depicting the characters in a story," Blake told BBC News.
"You are given visual information where you would normally expect to be interpreting someone's words.
"I think the advantage of these drawings is that they do in some sense make the scientists more informal and accessible to the newcomer."
His Lovelace depiction shows the mathematician and daughter of poet Lord Byron with Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine. She published the first algorithm for the mechanical computer and is widely recognised as the world’s first computer programmer.
Meanwhile, the Lovelock portrayal shows the scientist beside foliage and his Electron Capture Detector, which demonstrated the environmental danger of CFCs to the Earth.
In total, 20 people are depicted in the exhibition, which sits across five large works and is now open to the public.
Science Museum London Sir Quentin Blake Wonderlab: The Equinor Gallery Ada Lovelace James Lovelock Francis Crick James WatsonEurope's premier Evian Spa unveiled at Hôtel Royal in France
Clinique La Prairie unveils health resort in China after two-year project
GoCo Health Innovation City in Sweden plans to lead the world in delivering wellness and new science
Four Seasons announces luxury wellness resort and residences at Amaala
Aman sister brand Janu debuts in Tokyo with four-floor urban wellness retreat
€38m geothermal spa and leisure centre to revitalise Croatian city of Bjelovar
Two Santani eco-friendly wellness resorts coming to Oman, partnered with Omran Group
Kerzner shows confidence in its Siro wellness hotel concept, revealing plans to open 100
Ritz-Carlton, Portland unveils skyline spa inspired by unfolding petals of a rose
Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners are just one of the names behind The Emory hotel London and Surrenne private members club
Peninsula Hot Springs unveils AUS$11.7m sister site in Australian outback
IWBI creates WELL for residential programme to inspire healthy living environments
Conrad Orlando unveils water-inspired spa oasis amid billion-dollar Evermore Resort complex
Studio A+ realises striking urban hot springs retreat in China's Shanxi Province
Populous reveals plans for major e-sports arena in Saudi Arabia
Wake The Tiger launches new 1,000sq m expansion
Othership CEO envisions its urban bathhouses in every city in North America
Merlin teams up with Hasbro and Lego to create Peppa Pig experiences
SHA Wellness unveils highly-anticipated Mexico outpost
One&Only One Za’abeel opens in Dubai featuring striking design by Nikken Sekkei
Luxury spa hotel, Calcot Manor, creates new Grain Store health club
'World's largest' indoor ski centre by 10 Design slated to open in 2025
Murrayshall Country Estate awarded planning permission for multi-million-pound spa and leisure centre
Aman's Janu hotel by Pelli Clarke & Partners will have 4,000sq m of wellness space
Therme Group confirms Incheon Golden Harbor location for South Korean wellbeing resort
Universal Studios eyes the UK for first European resort
King of Bhutan unveils masterplan for Mindfulness City, designed by BIG, Arup and Cistri
Rural locations are the next frontier for expansion for the health club sector
Tonik Associates designs new suburban model for high-end Third Space health and wellness club
Aman sister brand Janu launching in Tokyo in 2024 with design by Denniston's Jean-Michel Gathy
From Nobu Restaurants and Ian Schrager’s latest hotel to Imagination Playgrounds and the set design for The Rocky Horror Show, US architect and designer David Rockwell always keeps it fresh. He tells us the secrets of his creativity