BE ADVISED: The NHM Car Park will be closed on Friday, April 3 in preparation for First Fridays. Parking is available at the Blue Structure Parking Lot at Exposition Park Drive and Figueroa Street. Tickets for the event are SOLD OUT. No tickets will be sold at the door. For questions or directions, please call 213.763.3466 or email info@nhm.org.

L.A. Underwater & Paleoart

Envision prehistoric marine life through paleontology and art.

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A paleoart rendition of Eupachydiscus sp. by Cullen Townsend.
A paleoart rendition of the ammonite Eupachydiscus sp. by Cullen Townsend. A three-dimensional reconstruction can be viewed in NHM's L.A. Underwater.

What is Paleoart?

Have you ever wondered how our vision of prehistoric life came to be? You may be surprised to learn how connected science and art are in terms of shaping our understanding of prehistoric life—so much so that there is an entire genre of art dedicated to creating a prehistoric world from fragments of fossil clues.

Paleoart is not just guesswork. Sometimes it involves complex 3-D modeling and ideas from many scientists. However, anyone can learn the basics and express their creativity through fossil-inspired art!

In this workbook, we will take a look at two fossils featured in the exhibition L.A. Underwater and explore the process of bringing these extinct animals “to life” through paleoart.

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