![Root Rhapsody exhibit](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/RhootRhapsody.jpg)
David Lipson collaborated with a middle-school teacher and artist, Jason Rogalski, in an art-science educational and public outreach activity called Root Rhapsody. First, Jason helped describe the root system of San Diego’s dominant native shrub, Artemisia californica.
![Jason sketches while Bob uses pressure washer to expose root system](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/JasonDrawsBobSprays600-300x225.jpg)
![Lipson lectures at middle school](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/LipsonRootLectureJCS-300x225.jpg)
![Hydroponic experiment with tomato plants](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/HydroponicJCS600-300x225.jpg)
We then set up a hydroponic growth experiment in Rogalski’s classroom to demonstrate the impact of limiting nutrients.
![Roots cast in resin](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/RootsResin-225x300.jpg)
The roots were then cast in clear resin, creating sculptures.
![Student painting with roots cast in resin](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/RootRhapGreen-300x149.jpg)
Students also created monochromatic paintings depicting a sample from the experiment. The sculptures and paintings were displayed at an event at the San Diego Public Library, along with another of Jason’s educational walk-in paintings, “Photosynthesis Fiesta.”
![Poster accompanying Root Rhapsody exhibit at SD Public Library](https://sci.sdsu.edu/lipsonlab/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/RootRhapPoster-207x300.jpg)