Caricatures of Scientists, an Artist's memories

[Marty Macaluso]

I have been doing caricatures at the Saturday night cocktail hours and dinners since about Sept. of '03. The first time I did caricatures at CSHL was in June of '03 for a 50th anniversary party...

Once a guy sat down and told me he was watching me for a while. He was interested in how I could look at someone and catch them with a minimum number of lines. In the back of my mind, knowing he was a scientist, it almost sounded like he wanted to do experiments on me. I was hoping he wouldn't invite me to his lab.

I used to take an occasional photo of a person holding up their caricature, then I heard that CSHL wanted to know who these people were. We worked out a system to have a numbered sign-up sheet, which people print their names on. I pencil their number in the bottom corner of the picture. I tell them that they can pick up their caricature after I have finished for the evening. I explain that I want to make copies of them first, but that they can keep the originals. Some people wonder what is being done with the copies and the big joke is that they are like "Rookie (baseball trading) Cards" only using scientists instead.








Saturday night cocktail hours and dinners are on my list of favorite parties to work at along with weddings and surprise 30th, 40th & 50th birthday parties. I like meeting and talking to scientists from around the world. Each time I come to CSHL there are different types of scientists attending; from genetic reaserchers and molecular biologists to scientists who work with flies and mice. I like to ask them what they do and work that into a background scene.

Usually during the cocktail hour I draw the scientists holding a drink and during the dinner I draw them eating a lobster.

Another favorite is the "mad scientist" background, which always gets a laugh especially when done to the right person.



I like when I have a crowd around me and I can pick-up on the comments I hear from the friends of the person in the "hot seat".
Here's a passage I wrote in my weblog after doing my first party at CSHL, the 50th anniversary party

I just got back from doing a party for scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Labs, it is almost midnight. This was a fun night, it was very casual. It was one of those rare nights when I got to make up new backgrounds and bodies from scratch. Everyone there was a Molecular Biologist, involved in Chromosomal DNA Research, or another type of biological research. They were from all over the world and most were very young. I felt like I was in Dr. Xavier's school for the gifted, like in the X-Men movies.
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