"Art offers scientists a chance to see the systems they work on in a new light,” says Emory biologist Nicole Gerardo. Her lab studies evolution by observing interactions between microbes and other organisms such as aphids and fungus-growing ants.

Gerardo teamed up with Diane Kempler, a lecturer in visual arts, to teach a ceramics course called “Clay and Science: A Symbiotic Relationship.”

The students created pieces that explored everything from the interactions of lichen, bark and trees to the relationship between reading and the brain. You can see these works and others in the video above.