Cancer research often takes place behind closed laboratory doors, in images, models and experiments that rarely reach the public. With Tiny Revelations, Professor Anne Rios wants to change that.
Tiny Revelations invites you into the wonder and human stories behind scientific discovery
Cancer research often takes place behind closed laboratory doors, in images, models and experiments that rarely reach the public. With Tiny Revelations, Professor Anne Rios wants to change that.
The Oncode Investigator, Professor at the UU and group leader at the Princess Máxima Center for pediatric oncology is opening a free microscopic art exhibition that brings the hidden world of cancer research into public view. Through striking microscopy images, personal storytelling and accessible scientific explanations, the exhibition shows how researchers study tumours, explore the body’s own defences and search for new ways to better understand cancer.
The exhibition comes at a time when the need to connect science and society is increasingly urgent. Breakthroughs in cancer research often begin with fundamental questions: how does a tumour grow, how do cells behave, and how can the immune system be activated against cancer? These questions are complex, but the images behind them can be powerful, direct and deeply human.
For Anne Rios, that power started with a personal moment in the lab. Looking through a microscope at cells she had engineered to light up, she was struck by what she saw. It was not only a research image. It was beauty, movement and life at its smallest scale.
That sense of wonder became one of the driving forces behind her work.
“Microscopy allows us to see what normally remains invisible,” says Professor Anne Rios. “For me, these images are not just scientific data. They are tiny revelations. They show us how life works, how disease develops and where new possibilities may begin. With this exhibition, we want to share that sense of wonder with people beyond the lab.”
Science, art and the public imagination
Tiny Revelations brings together science, art and philosophy. Visitors are invited to explore questions such as: what can we learn by watching cancer grow in real time? How can researchers study tumours more accurately by growing organ-like structures outside the body? And how can immunotherapy help activate the body’s natural defences against cancer?
Through this exhibition, Oncode Institute highlights the importance of curiosity-driven research: research that starts with fundamental questions about how cancer works, often before its practical application is known. These first insights are essential, because they create the scientific foundation on which future breakthroughs can be built.
“At Oncode Institute, we know that excellent cancer research starts with curiosity-driven questions and the urge to understand how life works at the smallest scale ,” says Jan Paul Medema, Scientific Director. “We also realize that seeing is believing and that is exactly what Tiny Revelations achieves. It visualizes live at a microscopic scale, creating insightful images and art at the same time. Art that may ultimately contribute to better therapies for patients.”
From the lab to the city
By placing microscopic images in a public exhibition space, Tiny Revelations creates a bridge between the laboratory and society. It invites visitors not only to learn about cancer research, but also to feel the wonder and urgency that drive scientists every day.
At its heart, the exhibition is also a personal invitation. Through these images and stories, Anne Rios and her team share something of themselves: their curiosity, creativity and fascination with the invisible worlds that shape life and disease. They hope visitors will leave not only with a sense of wonder, but also with space for their own reflection — their own tiny revelation.
The exhibition is presented by The SuperNatural Foundation and is based on the work of Anne Rios and her team.
Practical information
Exhibition: Tiny Revelations – A Microscopic Art Exhibition
Location: Nicolaïkerk, Nicolaaskerkhof 8, 3512 XC Utrecht
Dates: 9th of September (exhibition and performances)
Opening hours: 20:00-22:00
Dates: 11th and 12th of September (Exhibition only)
Opening hours: 9:00-17:00
Admission: Free
More information: www.tinyrevelations.nl