Artists work hand in hand with paleontologists to accurately reconstruct ancient plants, animals, and environments based on fossil evidence. It is impossible to photograph these bygone worlds. Therefore artists must create reconstructions to bring the past to back to life.

As many people know, it is difficult to paint or sculpt realistically even when copying direction from nature. The artists' challenge increases greatly when preparing a scientifically accurate scene using only fragmentary fossil material, the scientific literature, and the scientists' verbal descriptions - all of which may result in data that do not easily bend to the rules of traditional realistic art. 

Here, we provide a glimpse of the process used to prepare scientific reconstructions.

Site launched 4/5/10
Site by Mary Parrish