This painting uses leather from an invasive Burmese python

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Fine artist Laura Shape uses quite an unexpected medium in her visual artwork. It lends striking patterns to her abstract canvases, while helping restore rivers, reefs, and wetlands. Shape uses the leather of invasive species--specifically lionfish, carp, and Burmese pythons. "I use those materials to make vibrant, textured, abstract acrylic pieces," she tells Popular Science via video call.