April Neander is a Research Specialist at the University of Chicago and Scientific Artist. She was hired by the Luo mammal paleontology lab right out of grad school as a Scientific Illustrator in large part because of her experience processing CT data to make 3D models for animation. The Lab received a micro-CT scanner several years after that and April was trained to run the scanner and maintain the lab, in addition to scientific illustration. Running the micro-CT lab has become a large part of what April does, and she has been inspired by how beautiful the scans can be – seeing the insides of animals, plants, fossils, etc. After many years of admiring the beauty of internal anatomy, she began seriously working on the ExtraCT Skullpture the past few years. Her goal is to create abstract pieces that seem recognizably biological yet unfamiliar.
