In addition to my career in science, I am a trained painter and photographer. I adopt an interdisciplinary approach to studying natural patterns called fractals. Bioinspiration is my main focus – exploring the favorable properties that make fractals so prevalent in nature and applying them to artificial systems. I have studied fractals in physics, psychology, physiology, geography, architecture and art.

I use my interests in fractals to encourage collaborations between the arts and sciences and to promote public awareness of science. For example, my work has been featured in TV documentaries, including The Art of Science (ABC, 1998), Hunting the Hidden Dimension (PBS, 2008) and The Code (BBC, 2011) and has been the subject of popular press articles (e.g. in The New York Times and The London Times), magazine articles (e.g. in Scientific American, Time, The New Yorker, New Scientist and Discover) and ten popular science books. I also regularly give lectures around the world, invited by organizations as diverse as the Nobel Foundation, the White House, the Royal Society and national art galleries such as the Pompidou Centre and the Guggenheim Museum.