In his article for The Boston Globe, Dushko Petrovich looks at the work of American wildlife illustrator John James Audubon and reveals why illustration remains the medium of choice for scientific reference.
“When we turn to a picture to identify a bird – or the human pancreas, or a Doric column – we want a likeness not of any particular instance, but of the category itself. Ignoring all the anomalies and idiosyncratic moments that cameras helplessly collect, a draftsman of Audubon’s caliber is free to focus on what’s essential or distinctive and distill those qualities – gathered from observing live birds, posing dead specimens, and studying skeletons – into an image that invites both recognition and classification.”
Photographic technology with its gigapixels, high dynamic range, high-speed charge-coupled devices, high-definition video with infinite frame-rate, merely increases informational resolution—only illustration increases informational efficiency.
“Confronted with unprecedented quantities of data, we are constantly reminded that quality is what really matters. At a certain point, the quality and even usefulness of information starts being defined not by the precision and voracity of technology, but by the accuracy and circumspection of art.”
Full article (via BenFry.com)