My name is Grace Gibson, and I am a medical-illustrator-in-training based in Toronto, Canada. I am a first-year MScBMC candidate in the University of Toronto’s Biomedical Communications program. Please be advised that this website is a work in progress that will develop as I further build my portfolio!
Originally hailing from New Jersey, I attended Elizabethtown College in central Pennsylvania to receive my bachelor’s degree in English literature with a biology minor. I gained valuable experience as a scientist in Dr. Diane Bridge’s developmental biology lab, studying heat stress responses in two species of Hydra, but I ultimately determined that my intended career in medicine or biology was not the right choice for me. After deciding to instead pursue my skills in writing, my undergrad career culminated in a thesis project that combined all of my academic and personal interests, as I wrote and illustrated a 90-page graphic memoir—which, incidentally, would later form part of my BMC entrance portfolio.
Graduating from college in May 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic meant that my career path was uncertain for several years. After working a few odd jobs, including a stint as a freelance mural artist and sole proprietor of my own art business, Grace Gibson Artwork, I turned my attention to returning to school and reigniting my passions for art and science.
I am currently embarking on the earliest stages of my Master’s Research Project (MRP), which will culminate with an interactive website designed for patients undergoing metoidioplasty (a gender-affirming genital surgery). I hope to take this work further into a career in patient outreach and LGBTQ healthcare, helping members of my community access critical and life-saving care. I’m thrilled to be entering a field that excites me and combines some of my greatest lifelong interests, and I look forward to building a career that can help advance healthcare access and knowledge to the general public.