![\"A](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/1982-publication-graphic-bw_AG2_.jpg\")
Petra began life at EMBL in an office in downtown Heidelberg as the finishing touches were made to the laboratory\u2019s headquarters. But as soon as her studio was ready she set up on site next door to EMBL\u2019s electronic workshop. \u201cIt was amazing to see the institute being built, brick by brick,\u201d she recalls. \u201cAt the time we were like a small community \u2013 EMBL has grown tremendously in size and stature since: there are new buildings, new sites, more people and it has been an incredible journey.\u201d Taking inspiration from her colleagues, Petra developed her own techniques. \u201cUsing a curve template from the electronic workshop was my own personal revolution,\u201d she explains. \u201cIt made diagrams and curves much easier to draw: I believe I was the first to adopt this method \u2013 and perhaps the only one who ever used it!\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the institute grew, Petra frequently became involved in other projects, providing graphics for hundreds of scientific papers as well as a multitude of other projects. \u201cThere is an entire shelf of documents destined for EMBL\u2019s Archive, while my portfolio has filled hundreds of pages and I will continue working on it into my retirement!\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The rise of computers, Photoshop and colour printing gave even more energy to Petra\u2019s creativity, and her work was in high demand. This meant a difficult decision. \u201cI decided to move away from technical illustration and specialise in graphic design,\u201d she explains. \u201cGraphics can tell a vital part of the science story: you see the visual and you want to read on. They can simplify something very complex and help specialists and non-specialists alike to understand it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Petra\u2019s favourite project was a graphical analogy of a growing fruit fly embryo for EMBL\u2019s Annual Report in 1998. \u201cThe laboratory did not have a digital camera at the time, and to make the graphic I brought in an old pair of trousers and imaged the zip under a scanner,\u201d she recalls. \u201cIt\u2019s was very popular and many other biologists have requested versions of it for their own work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Petra\u2019s artwork sometimes held a hidden personal connection. \u201cTogether with Volker Wiersdorf, I designed an image used on the cover of the Journal of Cell Science<\/em> using wooden spools from my mother\u2019s old sewing machine,\u201d she says. \u201cI digitally modified the engraving on the spools and group leader Peter Becker sent it to the journal to accompany a paper.\u201d Her work has also featured on the cover of high profile journals such as Nature<\/em>, in this case visualising a network for work carried out at EMBL spinoff company Cellzome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She also reflects on what was perhaps her most difficult brief: drawing Charles Darwin smiling. \u201cFor a conference poster, group leader Michael Knop requested an image of a relaxed looking Charles Darwin, socialising with a glass of wine \u2013 and somehow cloning and yeast had to be involved! I searched everywhere for an image of the famous naturalist smiling, but he always appears very serious,\u201d she recalls. \u201cThere was only one thing I could do \u2013 draw him myself.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Petra\u2019s work has also helped to spread the word of EMBL\u2019s science through the global media. \u201cMy daughter was once visiting India and she stumbled upon one of my graphics on the front page of a national newspaper profiling a study by group leader Mathias Treier,\u201d she says. Another graphic that is frequently used by news organisations is an illustration of an \u2018exploding\u2019 chromosome, used to depict work by group leader Jan Korbel and colleagues that found a link between the inherited mutation and a particularly aggressive form of childhood brain cancer. \u201cEMBL\u2019s research is of interest and relevance the world over, and its been a privilege to work with the many inspiring people at the institute \u2013 including Nobel and Leibniz prize winners,\u201d Petra adds. \u201cIt\u2019s been a real honour.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She reflects on the diversity of science she has helped to visualise over the years. \u201cOftentimes the work carried out here by scientists is not in textbooks, it is completely new and I would make time to work with the scientists until we were both absolutely happy with the final product,\u201d she says. \u201cThere is an incredible openness to EMBL \u2013 I always felt free to ask questions, and there are many ways to learn more about the latest research, such as the annual Lab Day when people from all EMBL sites come together to share their ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Working under four EMBL Directors-General, Petra has seen first-hand almost the entire history of EMBL and is excited for its future. But as she moves into retirement she assures us that she is not going far. \u201cOne of the great things about EMBL is that alumni are always welcome,\u201d she says. \u201cEven when I become a pensioner, I will firmly remain part of the EMBL community. I wouldn\u2019t want it any other way: EMBL is a special world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n During her time at EMBL, Petra applied her talents to support the work of many teams, groups and individuals across the laboratory including in science, administration and communications. She is one of a small group of people at EMBL who witnessed the very beginnings of EMBL and she has been a valued member of staff ever since. On behalf of the whole of EMBL, we wish her all the best for the future and look forward to learning about her retirement adventures.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" EMBL\u2019s Petra Riedinger retires after 40 years producing posters, graphics, artwork and more<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":8692,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,17593],"tags":[80,17303,64,322,686,41,43,952,60],"embl_taxonomy":[],"class_list":["post-8691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lab-matters","category-people-perspectives","tag-alumni","tag-archive","tag-cell-biology","tag-embl-archive","tag-farewell","tag-genetics","tag-heidelberg","tag-history","tag-science-and-society"],"acf":{"article_intro":" EMBL\u2019s senior graphic designer Petra Riedinger retires after 40 years producing posters, graphics, artwork and more<\/p>\n","related_links":[{"link_description":"EMBL's department of Strategy and Communications ","link_url":"https:\/\/www.embl.de\/aboutus\/communication_outreach\/index.html"}],"article_sources":false,"vf_locked":false,"featured":false,"color":"#007B53"},"embl_taxonomy_terms":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Hand](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/1981-comparator_AG3.jpg\")
![\"embo_medal1986_ag2\"](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/EMBO_Medal1986_ag2.jpg\")
![\"Exhibition](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/EMBL-open-house-1986_poster_AG.jpg\")
![\"Graphic](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Flyembryo_closing-back_1998_AG.jpg\")
![\"Petra\u2019s](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/2002_NATURE_cellzome_AG.jpg\")
![\"Illustration](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Knop_Yeast-Evolution08_AG2.jpg\")
![\"Illustration](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/KorbelPress3_AG_3.jpg\")
![\"EMBL](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/EMBL_alloverGraphic_ag.jpg\")
![\"A](\"https:\/\/news.embl.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Graphics_collection_Petra_AG.jpg\")