SPECULATIVE EXOBIOLOGY ARTWORK
The work of the following artists I thought is the most realistic in depicting extraterrestrial species and ecosystems, who might exist in our universe. These are roughly ordered from what I found to be the 'best', though beyond the third there is no real order. Credence is given to those artists who applied scientific realism to representing their aliens, their world and ecosystems. Originality in appearance is valued here on this list, for although
convergent evolution may be possible in our universe, the mere presence of diversity among our planet's flora and fauna is testament to the fact that no one shape is valued over others. Basic physics and behavioral need dictates shape, and I for one am glad to see aliens whose appearance is shaped by science rather then a want for the audience to identify with the so-called 'non-humans', as seen so much in sci-fi movies and books.
As you gaze upon these wonderful and bizarre bioforms, I ask you to ponder: "What if? What if these creatures, some possessing sentience in our sense, actually exist? That via some sort of memetic super-positional influence the artists have captured the appearance of these beings who may even now gaze up at their stars and wonder alike?"
- FURAHA: This world-building project is solely orchestrated by artist Gert van Dijk, and is probably the best alien-life depiction you will find anywhere on the internet. The level of professionalism on the project's site was so complete that you can be forgiven for thinking it is the work of a university or well-known book company. But it is just the work of one man in his free time - rather like Space Engine in its early days. The project centers around the solar-system of Nu Phoenicis, a real star of the type F9 category, some 50 light-years away. The website is awesome and I urge you to explore it and its regularly updated blog, which is amazing in of its self. Here is but a teaser:
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planets of the Furahan system, to scale.

The Furaha world-map

Herbivores of Furaha...

An interesting fish
- The next best alien designs I found were on the Orion's Arm Universe project. Not only being a spectacular hard sci-fi representation of humanities future in space, it is home to some realistic and unique extraterrestrials. Each is thoroughly described in detail on the website, adhering to scientific realism and a rigid doctrine to not depicting humanoids. Of course, Orion's Arm is so much more then it's xenosophonts...
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A race of aliens called the
Muuh. Arguably OA's most famous aliens, they are a methane-based life form originally evoled on Titan-like worlds.
To'ul'h alien. Bizarre, but similar in mindset to humans, they evolved on a hellish but lush Venusian-type hothouse-world.

These tree-like creatures are the technologically advanced
Meistersingers, so-called because of the way they communicate verbally with symbiotic organisms that act as their eyes, ears and hands. They live in huge ships and travel the galaxy. Very cool.
- SNAIAD: Another world-building project similar to Furaha, also by one artist: C. M Kosemen (also known as Nemo-Ramjet on DeviantArt). This project is centered on the organisms inhabiting the planet Snaiad, which orbits an unknown star nearby that humanity has colonized some centuries in the future. But the human's are not important. What is important are the bizarre and truly alien wildlife on Snaiad. Visit the website yourself to get the full experience, it takes hours of reading and you won't regret any of it.
- Probably the best biological representation of intelligent lifeforms is done by Alex Ries, known as Abiogenesis on DeviantArt. He is also a well-known conceptual artist. All his art is amazing, but his Birrin aliens are of concern today! They are a hexapodial species from a hot, arid world called Chriirah. Theirs is a society similar to ours, facing the same challenges of technology, politics and climate-change, amidst a world of intriguing and beautiful wildlife.
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Birrin alien

A deadly marine predator much like our moray-eels.

Civil unrest.

Birrin astronaut
- The alien artwork of Sanrou on DeviantArt is both strange but natural-looking. As you explore the images and data on the fauna, you can almost believe the tidally-locked planet Anu was recently discovered by astronomers and is being studied by biologists.
- Simon Roy's (or povorot on DeviantArt) aliens are interesting in a space-opera sense, as you could just see them strolling (or scuttling) through a Star Wars type cantina.
Anyway, that's it for now. I'll post some more alien creature art in the future, since this is only the tip of a creepy and interesting alien iceberg!