The American Society of Microbiologists (ASM) recently held its first "Agar Art" contest and received 85 submissions¹ of artwork all created by microbiologists "using bacteria as paint and agar and a petri dish as a canvas," according to Emily Dilger, ASM's public outreach manager. Agar is a "jelly-like substance" that bacteria eat and grow on, Dilger explained.

 

The microscopic² masterpieces included a recreation of Vincent van Gogh's "The Starry³ Night" by Missouri microbiologist Melanie Sullivan. She used several types of bacteria to produce the various colors, including bacteria that is "a common cause of lower urinary tract⁴ infections" and a bacterium⁵ that can cause infections including pneumonia⁶ and meningitis, according to her description of her piece.

 

"Because a lot of these bacteria can have dangerous implications, we made sure all the submissions had to come from a member of the society," ASM marketing⁷ coordinator⁸ Chaseedaw Giles told ABC News. "Lots of safety precautions have to be taken, especially in properly storing and disposing these cultures, so we didn't just want random⁹ people playing around with bacteria."

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