I've always enjoyed science illustrations. They are different from photographs in that they can include an element of artistic beauty and creativity not found in a picture. Perhaps there are others who feel the same?
Here's the 1st science illustration I ever actually noticed was also a piece of art. One of Ernst Haeckel's radiolarians.
There's a nice mathematical but organic feel to these drawings and I look forward to seeing more (following this tag now :)). I'm not familiar with any sources of this art, but would you consider something like Animalium fitting into this category? What about the covers for O'Reilly books?
Glad you like them! Yeah, the patterns and arrangements give it a unique feel that I've always found fascinating. Those O'Reilly books are definitely the same style of artwork and some from the Animalium, engraving. I think the fact that these types of art are engraved, as opposed to drawn, makes them even more incredible.