Visualize your Science

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Visualize your Science

We offer courses and workshops in graphic design directly applied to science.

08/10/2026

Here's why you don't need a separate legend for every colour in a scientific poster.
One of our former students, Mihaela Bejenari from Aalborg University, shows how to do it. She introduces her colour coding right at the visual entry point: red fluorescent protein, green fluorescent protein, named and coloured in the top right, close to the title.
So when you reach the results graph or the microscopy images further down, you already know what the colours mean. Which is great, as you won't need to hunt for the legend.
Another smart move: she avoids pure red and green, shifting both hues slightly to make the combination more accessible for people with colour-vision deficiencies.
These are small design choices that really add value to understanding. So if you thought an entry point is only there to grab attention, I hope this convinces you otherwise. Mihaela shows in her poster how it also gives the reader the context they need to understand everything that follows, including the hard data.

06/10/2026

Choose your colors with intention! 🎨

Colors are not only used to make your illustrations look pretty. In the best cases, they also communicate something.

For example, in this graphical abstract by Milo Marsfeldt Skovfoged (Aarhus University), yellow, blue, and purple are used to connect the interviewing method with the different results. The color coding makes the message easier to understand.

02/10/2026

Stuck trying to draw complex objects? Try drawing step-by-step!

In this example, we show how a simple curved line evolves into a realistic half-opened (blood) vessel by using shapes, perspective, color, and gradients. Each step adds a little more depth and realism.

Whether you're creating illustrations for publications, presentations, or scientific communication, start with simple shapes and build them gradually into something engaging and accessible.

29/09/2026

Your scientific illustrations don't always have to be photorealistic.

A cartoony style might even be easier and quicker to draw, and it can make your science feel more accessible.

By using simple shapes, strokes, and bold shadows and highlights, you can quickly draw trees for a poster about forest fires or something similar.

As seen in the mock-up poster drawn by Liam in one of our live draw sessions in the Visualize your Science course, the science still gets to shine, and the trees help set the context.

Of course, when proportions and details are essential, photorealism may be the preferred illustration style.

Which style do you prefer using?

24/09/2026

Here's why you need a visual entry point.
These four alumni posters show how. A strong visual entry point does more than grab attention. It creates context, gives viewers what they need before the details, and guides them straight to the next section. Basically, it makes people stay, and it sparks interest.

The four Visualize Your Science alumni are from completely different fields, but their posters all use that same smart element, and it works in every one:
Isak Almyren (Chalmers University of Technology), carbon corrosion and mass spectrometry
Mihaela Bejenari (Aalborg University), gene expression in yeast
Serhat Aktay (KTH Royal Institute of Technology), transcription and genomic data pipelines
Teanette van der Spuy (Chalmers University of Technology), satellite antenna design

If you want to see the posters in full, with analysis, check them out on our Poster Wall on the website.

19/09/2026

Learn how to use storytelling in your presentations!

17/09/2026

You don't need big arrows to guide someone's eye through a graphic.
One of our former students, Caroline Lööf from Chalmers University, shows that with her graphical abstract.
Instead of using arrows, she uses these simple tricks:
→ An S-shaped path running through the background creates a natural flow from start to finish → A warm-colored illustration marks the entry point, so the viewer knows exactly where to look first → Bigger text at the bottom right signals a clear exit point
That's it. Using shape, color, and scale can be an elegant alternative to arrows and makes the work more interesting to look at.
And once your eye follows that path, the science comes through clearly. Her research uses mass spec imaging plus histological ROI identification and multivariate analysis to build a chemical fingerprint of prostate cancer. All in service of better patient outcomes.
Beautiful illustrations. Subtle labels. And a clear message.
That's what happens when visual flow is designed with purpose.

15/09/2026

You've already sat for hours on your presentation slides.
Moved the same bullet multiple times. Shrunk the font so it fits the text. Added another chart because more data feels solid.
And it's still not really working.
In most cases nobody ever taught us researchers how to present. We spend years to master the science part, then get ten minutes to make a room care about it.
Present your Science helps you with that. Learn how to structure your story, what belongs on a slide, and how to design visuals that support you instead of overwhelming your audience.
Autumn round starts next week: Sep 25 – Nov 27. Fully online, recorded lectures plus live instructor feedback.
Defense, conference talk, or team meeting coming up? Then this is for you.
For more information on the course or to signup click the link in the comments below.

11/09/2026

Roots are found everywhere in nature, here’s how to draw them!

08/09/2026

Branching shapes show up everywhere in nature: roots, rivers, neurons. Same logic, but different. But where to start drawing them?

As scientists, we draw these more than you'd think. So we decided to share a quick four-step guide to drawing vector branching structures. Shown on the example everyone's been waiting for 🌾

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Espoo
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+46707468144

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https://www.visualizeyourscience.com/

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