Picture Yourself: Women in STEAM

Who do you see when you picture a scientist? Do you see a stranger in a lab coat, or perhaps a family member, a friend, or a neighbor down the street? Do you see yourself when you picture a scientist?

In this exhibit, which is spread throughout the Museum galleries, you'll see beautiful portraits of local women scientists--painted by local female artists—and learn about their work, hobbies, and backgrounds. You may discover ways you are a scientist, just like them!

Each of the scientists in this exhibit is a Discovery Museum Science & Engineering Communication Fellow. Have you met any of them at our Meet the Scientists nights?

In This Exhibit

an oil painting of a woman in a lab coat standing in front of a classroom blackboard covered with writing and mathematical formulas

Professor Bulbul Chakraborty, Condensed Matter Theorist

Bulbul Chakraborty is Professor of Physics at Brandeis University. She studies the physical laws that describe how materials like sand, grains, Oobleck, and other pressure-dependent substances move. She is also an avid birdwatcher and an amateur singer of Bengali songs--who loves to sing in her office! 

To learn more, visit her portrait in the Yes, It's Math gallery on the 2nd floor.

This scientist's portrait is watercolor and colored pencil on mixed media board, by artist Katie Runde of Bristol, VT.

Ellice Patterson, M.S., Biologist

Ellice Pattersion is Founder/Artistic and Executive Director of Abilities Dance, and Executive Director of BalletRox. Abilities Dance is a nonprofit for diverse artists within and outside the disability community that uses dance and art as tools to promote intersectional disability rights. As a student, Ellice sailed from Massachusetts to Ireland and conducted research in the Atlantic and Caribbean oceans on coastal runoff, sponge species, and spider habitats! She is a passionate researcher and science communicator, dedicated to uplifting Black women in STEM. 

To learn more, visit her portrait in across from the Water Gallery on the 1st floor.

This scientist's portrait is oil on canvas, by artist Wing Na Wong of Danbury, CT.

Professor Maureen Ritchey, Cognitive Neuroscientist

Maureen Ritchey is Assistant Professor of Psychology & Neuroscience at Boston College. She studies how different parts of our brains work together to learn new information and remember past events--and she loves how creative her work as a scientist is! She enjoys hiking, baking, reading fiction, and doing arts and crafts projects.

To learn more, visit per portrait in Bessie's Diner on the 2nd floor.

This scientist's portrait is oil and acrylic on canvas, by artist Indigo Fox Tree-McGrath of Boston, MA.

Professor Melissa Kosinski-Collins, Structural Biologist

Melissa Kosinski-Collins is Professor of Biology at Brandeis University. She studies how viruses are put together, why they enter our cells, and the changes that occur in our molecules as diseases such as Alzheimer's progress. She designs models to help student researchers explore diseases, and is fascinated by the structures of molecules and how they connect and move together to make beautiful patterns--like the protein model she is holding in her portrait. 

To learn more, visit her portrait on the 1st floor near the Ferro Fluid exhibit across from the cubbies.

This scientist's portrait is watercolor and colored pencil on mixed media board, by artist Katie Runde of Bristol, VT.

Professor Piali Sengupta, Sensory Neuroscientist

Piali Sengupta is Professor of Biology at Brandeis University. She studies how animals sense environmental signals such as chemicals and temperature, and how they use this information to guide their behavior and development. She grew up in Kolkata, India and came to the United States to study Biology at Bryn Mawr College and then MIT, where she earned her Ph.D. She enjoys reading widely, '90s alt-metal music, and traveling to remote places with bad weather! 

To learn more, visit her portrait in the Discovery Treehouse.

This scientist's portrait is oil and acrylic on canvas, by  artist Indigo Fox Tree-McGrath of Boston, MA.

Dr. Suanna Selby Crowley, Geoarcheologist

Suanna Selby Crowley is Founder of HeadFort Consulting, a company that advises universities, museums, and research centers on the best ways to make complex scientific information more compelling to broad audiences. She studies the history of ancient peoples through artifacts, soil layers, and landscapes of the past, some dating back more than 40,000 years. This work has earned her the nickname "Dr. Dirt" and taken her to South Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and throughout the United states. 

To learn more, visit her portrait in the Simple Machines gallery on the 2nd floor.

This scientist's portrait is oil on canvas, by artist Wing Na Wong of Danbury, CT.