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Art Served up in a Petri Dish

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AC Microbiology Students Enter International Agar Art Contest

When it comes to a selected medium, artists have plenty of choices at their disposal. Paint, pencil, ink, chalk or whatever fits the image they’re attempting to portray.

But bacteria? As an art medium?

Absolutely.

Students in Angelina College Microbiology classes this month have been creating “agar art.” It’s art created in a petri dish using living, growing organisms – such as bacteria.

Under the guidance of AC instructors Dr. Paula Nellessen and Dr. Kathleen McClinton, along with lab coordinator Mallory Smith, those AC students have prepared their displays for an upcoming international competition.

Nellessen said the contest is sponsored as part of the American Society of Microbiology’s Agar Art contest, and that this year’s theme is “Microbiology in Space.” Thus the student-created themes of lunar views, land rovers and others.

“Basically, what we’re doing, the students come up with a picture, and they recreate the picture using a petri dish using bacteria,” Nellessen said. “Some of the bacteria have different colors depending on the temperature and the medium, or whether there’s a UV light involved or not.”

Meaning not only do the students have to know the right bacteria to use based on the image they’re trying to create and the colors they want, but they also have to know how to manipulate the bacteria in this specific medium.

The creative focus is just microbiology in space, so we have some creating space ships, and others creating lunar visuals,” Nellessen said. “One of the interesting things is I’m actually doing a plate in collaboration with my son (Dr. Matthew Nellessen) who’s a doctorate student at the University of New Mexico. He’s doing research on Mars using the rovers. He developed a picture, and I’m attempting to create it using agar art.”

Nellessen added the participating students would receive extra credit in the class, but they’d also be eligible for a prize if their work is selected for the international competition.

Participating students, along with their listed home towns, are as follows:

Nellessen’s class – Damien Anderson (Clearfield, Utah), Shanequa Blount (Lufkin), Cristian Castillo (Nacogdoches), Kendra Esquivel (Hudson), Ashley Luna (Nacogdoches), Rachel Moore (Pollok) and Angelica Ramirez (Lufkin).

Angelina College microbiology student Darrien Anderson manipulates bacteria in a petri dish in order to create an image. AC students are creating their unique exhibitions for an international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology students Cristian Castillo and Ashley Luna team up to create an image using bacteria in a petri dish. AC students are creating their unique exhibitions for an international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology student Cristian Castillo manipulates bacteria in a petri dish in order to create an image. AC students are creating their unique exhibitions for an international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology student Angelica Ramirez shows her work after creating an image using bacteria in a petri dish. AC students are creating their unique exhibitions for an international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology student Angelica Ramirez adds touches for her project creating art from bacteria in a petri dish. AC students are creating their unique exhibitions for an international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology student Rachel Moore created this image by manipulating bacteria in a petri dish. The project is part of the international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest AC students have entered. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)
Angelina College microbiology student Cheyenne Landrum created this image by manipulating bacteria in a petri dish. The project is part of the international “Agar Art: Microbiology in Space” contest AC students have entered. (Gary Stallard/AC Press photo)

McClinton’s class – Joseph Flores (Lufkin), Melanie Garcia (Lufkin), Cheyenne Landrum, Jacklyn Russell (Onalaska) and Lakyia Woods (Nacogdoches).  

For further information regarding the program, contact Dr. Paula Nellessen at pnellessen@angelina.edu or Dr. Kathleen McClinton at kmcclinton@angelina.edu.

For information regarding this press release and photos, contact Gary Stallard at gstallard@angelina.edu.

Gary Stallard
Sports Information Director Gary Stallard, who also serves as a Liberal Arts Instructor, begins his eleventh season with Angelina College. Following a career as a U.S. Marine, Stallard completed his bachelor’s degree at Stephen F. Austin University, where he majored in English and Journalism. For more than 16 years, he has worked as a sports writer/columnist/photographer for the Lufkin Daily News; he continues to contribute free-lance articles on occasion. Stallard has won several awards for writing, including the Golden Hoops Award for basketball writing in 2003, Regional Sports Writer of the Year in 2004, and the Texas Press Association’s first-place award for column writing in 2007 and in 2014. He has also done basketball, football and baseball radio and live streaming play-by- play and color commentary for an ESPN affiliate. Currently Stallard serves as play-by-play broadcaster for AC basketball, baseball and softball games. Prior to arriving at Angelina College, Stallard taught English at Lufkin High School for four years. He currently teaches Developmental Writing classes at AC. He and his wife Susan live in Lufkin.

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