Jelena Berenc is an artist known for using bold pen strokes and detailed pencil shading to explore the idea of quantum fluctuations in spacetime. This year, she will bring her vision to Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory as the 2025 Fermi Forward Discovery Group Guest Artist.
The Guest Artist program fosters collaboration between scientists and artists to help the public gain more understanding about cutting-edge research at Fermilab. The program is funded by Fermi Forward Discovery Group, which manages and operates Fermilab on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy.
During her time at the laboratory, Berenc will team up with scientists to create art based on their research. The pieces she creates will be shown in art displays for public viewing at the laboratory.
“Connecting science to art helps spread awareness of Fermilab’s research to a wider community,” said Natalie Johnson, head of Fermilab’s Office of Education and Public Engagement. “Looking at physics research through different perspectives can make the science more accessible, with the ultimate goal of inspiring young people to pursue STEM careers.”
Berenc wants to learn more about virtual particles, theorized to be tiny fluctuations in the fields that make up all physical matter. She will collaborate with researchers at Fermilab who have studied these particles through the Muon g-2 experiment.
“Scientific concepts expressed through a visual language help audiences understand the fundamental rules of the universe,” said Berenc.
Berenc brings with her years of experience collaborating with STEM researchers and institutions. Berenc recently curated an art show in Chicago that featured installations from both artists and experts in fields that included mathematics, physics, astrophysics and biology.
Berenc’s art curation expertise makes her uniquely equipped to organize an art exposition that showcases the art created in collaboration with Fermilab researchers.
“I was captivated by the duality in Berenc’s work,” said Georgia Schwender, the visual arts coordinator at Fermilab and manager of the guest artist program. “She takes concepts and explores their complexity with precision. Her thought process, visual language and creative journey are deeply compelling.”
Berenc’s self-described art method, information realism, guides her creative process.
“Using this process, I don’t allow my feelings or beliefs to inform the art,” said Berenc. “Instead, I use the information in front of me.”
An example of her method is her piece “Book of Knowledge,” a 1,000-page book filled with 500,000 tiny marks, she calls bits. The bits make up only 4% of the pages, while the other 96% is blank, symbolizing how much scientists may still not understand about the fundamental structure of the universe.
“As America’s premier particle accelerator laboratory, our goal is to understand the fundamental particles that make up our universe and the forces that govern their behavior,” said Schwender. “To make our discoveries more accessible, it’s important to present the material in ways that allow everyone to appreciate the significance of the work.”
Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory is America’s premier national laboratory for particle physics and accelerator research. Fermi Forward Discovery Group manages Fermilab for the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. Visit Fermilab’s website at www.fnal.gov and follow us on social media.
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