R. Friedrich Bliem
Biography in the Arts
Painting from Friedrich´s mid teens
From his early 20´s: Musician
First record with the Austrian band Misthaufen, 1970
From his early 30s: Editors comment on cartoon series, Industrial Biotechnology, August 1985, Cardiff, Newles Publishing ltd.
Who is R. Friedrich Bliem?
The short answer
R. Friedrich Bliem bridges art and science, exploring life sciences and robotics, reflecting on evolution and human identity in the face of technological change. His paintings bring the hidden world of science into view, inviting audiences to sense and feel, as opposed to explaining, what is normally hidden from outsiders.
Background & Education:
He was born in Austria, raised in Australia, and worked in the UK and USA. His father was a professional as an artist, from whom he very early on a aquired the basic skills of painting in vary medi and allowed him full access to his studio. As of his late teens he spent several years as musician before continuing with his training in the arts, lastly in the studio of Rudolf Macek MRoy.Acad.Arts. This also led him to enroll in a course in bioprocess engineering.
Professional Path:
Bliem first worked as a cartoonist and scientific illustrator for renowned academic publishers such as Elsevier (including Trends in Biochemistry, Trends in Biotechnology) and as freelance artist.
Subsequently he continued a path in science and technology, in academia, in industry and as entrepreneur («research»), before once again focusing on art. A common thread throughout has been the repeated focus on the visual communication of scientific content.
Exhibitions & Presentations
Today he writes on aspects of art and his works have been shown in Austria and the UK. His first exhibition was in Vienna, 1979 and the first exhibition of Science Art was in Nov. 1984 in Cambridge, England.
Art Style & Themes:
His work aims to express scientific concepts, especially from cell biology and evolution, in aesthetically appealing images, inviting the viewer to access to the microcosm on a sensory level. In addition, his repertoire includes animal caricatures. More recently he has also focused on the co-creation of images with AI-based robot printers.
His Aims
R. Friedrich Bliem is a multidisciplinary artist who combines art and science, especially through his visual interpretations of the microcosm. The impetus for his adoption of science-based motifs in his paintings stemmed from his observation that, despite the breadth and diversity of subject matter represented in art museums, science was conspicuously absent. He has ventured into the theory of science art as an oeuvre unto itself, but his motivation remains that same, i.e. simply to place science among the subjects of the visual arts.
Through exhibitions in established cultural institutions especially in Vienna he plays a role in shaping the SciArt movement.
Cambridge Evening News, November 23, 1984
Science Art exhibition from 1984
In 1973 he became fascinated by the phenomenon sonochromatism. To explore this further he enrolled in a study programm encompassing chemistry, microbiology and engineering at the BOKU university in Vienna, while continuing his art training.
In 1979, he was accepted into the studio of Rudolf Macek, an accomplished artist from the Prager Academy of Fine Arts. By then, Bliem had begun exhibiting his artwork in small galleries in Vienna. This early blending of art, science and technology helped him realize that certain ideas, whether scientific, technical, or philosophical, could be communicated most powerfully through various visual forms. With this arts traing he was soon able to as a science cartoonist and illustrator for several journal publishers during in Cambridge, England.
From art to research and development
In 1987 was offered a position in research and development in the USA, based of previous research. Although he had intended only a three year quasi sabatical from the arts, it led a prolonged path in industrial «R&D», academia and as entrepreneur, before returning to the arts.
A common thread throughout, beginning with his early paintings while still studying, has been the repeated focus on the visual communication of scientific content.
Above two examples of his science/engineering publications and patents
Tango Nr 3, Oil on panel, 50x60 cam, 2019
