Cross-department collaboration brings art and science to The Bridge

A cross-department collaboration is bringing art and science together at The Bridge in ZSR Library through Botanical Bridges: Observation and Invention, a new exhibition showcasing work from Lydia Smith’s Spring 2026 Life Drawing class. An opening reception will be held on Friday, April 17, from 2–4 p.m. at The Bridge. The project brings together Information Systems, the Departments of Art and Biology, Wake The Arts, and University Collections.

Inspired by the Wake Forest Herbarium’s collection of plant specimens, Smith’s students created and personally framed each of the twenty-four watercolor and colored pencil drawings in the exhibition. The idea for the project emerged from an early conversation between new faculty members Smith and Assistant Professor of Biology Christopher Krieg. During new faculty orientation, the two colleagues began brainstorming ways to connect botany and drawing. 

“I was especially excited to find a way to introduce my drawing students to the botanical specimens in Wake Forest’s Herbarium,” said Smith.

She credits Director of Client Services in IS Amy Triana for presenting The Bridge as a possible location for sharing the collaboration with the campus. 

“The Bridge is a site of active problem-solving and knowledge organization, and the exhibition Botanical Bridges represents an interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to research and creativity,” said Smith when reflecting on the exhibit’s location.

Smith views art as a powerful tool to connect diverse perspectives, experimental ideas, and creative thinking across campus. 

Each student in Smith’s Life Drawing class created two works: an observational drawing that accurately captures a pressed plant’s morphology and an “inventive” piece inspired by close study of that specimen. These drawings are displayed in separate spaces within The Bridge, inviting viewers to identify connections as they experience both parts of the installation. 

Supported by a Wake the Arts grant, the exhibition will remain on view at The Bridge through spring 2027.