The world is absolutely full of fascinating creatures, patterns and objects – some too small for the human eye to see. We inspired you with the amazing world of the micro-scale. The Scale Free Network’s Art-Science Lab was designed to provide a different perspective of the world around us.

We are all familiar with everyday objects like coins or salt but do we really know what they look like? Which micro-beasts live inside a single droplet of water? What are scientists looking at when measuring in micrometres, nanometres or picometres?

At the Art-Science workshop,you could take a look through the microscope yourself and explored the world from a new perspective.

Participants were encouraged to bring in objects that they wanted to see up close, but were also provided with a large range of samples to look at, from feathers, dice and leather to honeycomb, coins, ants and magazine pages.

Lab coats, microscopes and art materials were provided. Collaboration over the four days produced a joint work of art.

Scale Free Network (SFN) is a Melbourne based art-science collective. Combining the interdisciplinary skills of artist Briony Barr, microbiologist Dr Gregory Crocetti and art teacher Jacqueline Smith, SFN works with creative combinations of science and art to design participatory experiences for children and adults. Drawing on the hidden worlds of the micro-scale, SFN works with microscopes, drawing, sculpture, projection and collaboration as their primary creative tools.