A first understanding of a scientific field can often be gained by trying to understand the asthetic motivation of its active researchers. What do they consider the beauty of their field? What makes them most excited? Such an analysis will by necessity be rather subjective, but in the case of systems biology it seems to align well with the historic interdisciplinary roots of the field. In my opinion, the three asthetic qualities that seem to be most relevant are the following: diversity, simplicity, and complexity. All three get a new twist in systems biology, and all three are essential for a full systems biological approach. A first understanding of a scientific field can often be gained by trying to understand the asthetic motivation of its active researchers. What do they consider the beauty of their field? What makes them most excited? Such an analysis will by necessity be rather subjective, but in the case of systems biology it seems to align well with the historic interdisciplinary roots of the field. In my opinion, the three asthetic qualities that seem to be most relevant are the following: diversity, simplicity, and complexity. All three get a new twist in systems biology, and all three are essential for a full systems biological approach.