Scientist’s colorized X-ray images of nature make for stunning art

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The development of x-ray technology in the late 19th century was one of the most important advances in medicine. Techniques were refined as we learned more about radiation and the risks it poses, which is maybe why artists haven’t played around with X-rays all that much. As a medical physicist in the Netherlands, Dr. Arie van’t Riet got quite adept with X-ray technology, so when he turned his thoughts to art, his choice of medium was clear. Arie van’t Riet gave a recent Tedx talk where he explained his process.

His first subject was a bouquet of tulips, which X-rayed surprisingly well. The resulting image burned into silver bromide x-ray film showed an astounding level of detail in the petals of the flower. Riet digitized the image and inverted it in Photoshop, then he set to work adding color in strategic places. As his work has matured, Riet has started creating more complicated scenes of nature which he calls bioramas.

Considering the inherent risk in X-rays, Riet refuses to subject living animals to radiation exposure for the sake of art. As such, all the creatures on display in his pieces are… recently deceased. He found that taxidermied animals didn’t produce good results because they don’t actually contain any of the internal structures — just the skin. It’s a bit harder to come by well-preserved animals, but friends and acquaintances have been able to provide Riet with a steady string of insects, lizards, birds, and sometimes various mammals.

After composing the scene, Riet strives to get just the right exposure for a realistic look. It can be hard to make things look natural when a flower needs only a very short burst of x-rays, but a monitor lizard needs a much longer one. Sometimes he has to block parts of the scene and vary the intensity of the radiation for just the right effect. You can’t argue with the results, though. Riet has a large gallery of his work online.

Click here to view his onlinw gallery.