Illustration Internship at Beaty Biodiversity Museum
I finished my classroom studies at California State University Monterey Bay in summer 2015, and in fall I returned home to Vancouver to begin my capstone internship in the exhibits and design department at the Beaty Biodiversity Museum.

Beaty Biodiversity Museum Entrance
My main project was to illustrate a representative of each of the six collections at the museum: Tetrapods (vertebrates excluding fish), Insects/Arthropods, Marine Invertebrates, Fish, Herbarium (plants), and Fossils. I was to illustrate each representative in a variety of ways for the education department, to make handouts for their school programs.
My first day was a Monday, and the museum was closed. I set out into the empty museum to survey the contents of the cabinets, and come up with a short list of subjects that my supervisors would help me to narrow down. In the end, we chose the hawksbill turtle, tarantula, chambered nautilus, white’s seahorse, salmonberry, and ammonite.
Over the next ten weeks, I worked at a spare desk in the design lab on my illustrations. For each specimen I made a colouring page, a how-to-draw page, a labelled scientific diagram, and in some cases a more fully rendered illustration. I drew some using ink, some graphite, and some I digitally rendered. Each was then formatted using a program called InDesign to add the museum’s logo and accompanying text.
I was also able to receive training in specimen handling, to participate in the opening of a major art exhibit, and to attend several events, such as a book launch for author Briony Penn, and a lecture by NatGeo photographer Paul Nicklen. It was such a privilege to work alongside the professionals who work at the Beaty. Now that my internship is finished, I am officially a graduate. I look forward to my upcoming freelance projects in 2016.
Here are a couple of my internship’s works in progress. The finished versions can be found on my B&W portfolio page.
Graduation from CSUMB’s Science Illustration Program
Classes are officially over at California State University Monterey Bay for another year, and that means graduation for the Science Illustration Graduate Program Class of 2015! I am very lucky to have had such excellent mentorship not only from the instructors, but also from my fellow students. We all brought something unique to the table and were able to learn so much from one another. This week and next we are finishing up adjustments to our final assignments, and turning in our portfolios.

CSUMB Science Illustration Class of 2015, and instructors
Next, after a well-deserved summer break, we are all headed off to various states and countries to fulfill our internship requirements. In the fall I will be interning at the Beaty Biodiversity Museum in Vancouver, British Columbia.
Wishing you all the best in the future, guys. Well done.
2015 Illustrating Nature Exhibit – Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History
- May 15, 2015
- In Events, News, Shows
Student works from the Science Illustration Program
California State University Monterey Bay

Poster Art by Daisy Chung
I have four pieces in this show, running May 2 – June 14, 2015 at the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History. The instructors of our program, Ann Caudle, Jenny Keller, Amadeo Bachar, and Lucy Conklin were our curators for the show, and they selected pieces that worked together cohesively to express the interests and skills of the class. My classmates and I worked very hard not only to make the artwork itself, but also mount, mat, and frame the work ourselves.

Emily Carr/ Klee Wyck 1871-1945

Mountain Lion

Ghost Horse with English Snaffle Bridle

Intertidal Invertebrates
Coastside Land Trust — California Wildlife Art Show
I am thrilled that the Coastside Land Trust accepted my Leatherback Turtle and Sea Nettle painting into their art show featuring California wildlife. Did you know that the endangered Leatherback Turtle is actually California’s official State Marine Reptile?

Flyer for California Wildlife Art Show

Leatherback Turtle and Sea Nettle

Jen Burgess with her Leatherback Turtle and Sea Nettle painting
I had the unique opportunity while I was volunteering for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary Exploration Center, in Santa Cruz California, to get up close and personal with a fibreglass cast of a real leatherback turtle. It was a rare chance to sketch the face of a prehistoric (& still extant, if endangered) creature up close, especially now that the cast is mounted high up on the wall. I made this watercolour piece as one of my portfolio submissions to apply to the Science Illustration Program at California State University, Monterey Bay.