Meet Gique Eleanor Lutz

Designer, Molecular Biologist, & Creator of Tabletop Whale

What inspired you to create your science illustration blog, Tabletop Whale?

I've always been really interested in science and art, so when I graduated this June I thought it would be awesome to try and combine the two things into one project. I spent a couple of months learning to make a web page from scratch, and then I just started posting infographics of things that I thought were really interesting. I love animating things that you might not be able to see in real life, like how muscles move from the inside, or how lungs move when you breathe.

What are the challenges you've met along the way?

I think the biggest challenge with Tabletop Whale is managing my time so I can update it on a somewhat regular schedule. I try to aim for one infographic a month, but it's sometimes difficult because I have other work projects that take priority. And sometimes I want to make a really complicated animation, so it takes even longer to finish an infographic than usual. 

What do you think is special about being a gique?

I think my favorite things about art is that you have a lot of freedom. Of course science illlustrations have to be more or less accurate, but for other projects anything goes. There are tons of awesome painters and designers out there that can do magic with their art. But on the other hand I love learning science, because so many things in the world are immensely more complicated than people imagine. I think a lot of scientific facts are crazier than any artist could think up on their own.  So I suppose I like science and art because they're both ways for me to see more of the awesome things in the world.

Any advice for people who want to start their own blog?

I'd say that if you have a project you think would be awesome - just go for it and see what happens! Well, on a reasonable level of course. It's also important to be realistic, especially if your project involves something drastic like quitting your day job without a backup plan. 

Tabletop Whale is an original science illustration blog, created by Eleanor Lutz.

Check out one of her infographics below on Flight Videos Deconstructed.

For more illustrations & information, visit tabletopwhale.com.