Posts

Showing posts from May, 2017

Week 8: Nanotechnology and Art

Image
During this week's lectures, Professor Vesna talked about nanotechnology and how it relates to art. She attached a video underneath her lecture that consists of a discussion with Dr. Gimzewski. One of the important things that stuck out to me in his discussion was when he talks about Richard Feynman's work. Gimzewski says that Feynman thought that, "The principles of physics, as fast as I can see, do not speak against the possibility of maneuvering things atom by atom...put the atoms down where the chemist says, and so you have the substance" (Feynman). Obviously art is mostly a creative process. Then on the other hand, science is stereotypically more organized and objective. So, the idea of taking atoms and putting them wherever he wants to put them compared to the normal way of thinking and placing each atom in the same way all the time opened up new opportunities for technological advances. Feynman was able to add his own creativity to a subject that is usually see...

Week 7: Neuroscience and Art

Image
This week, Professor Vesna talks about the connections between neuroscience and art and the impact neuroscience has had on our society. From the outside, it is tough to see the connection between the two fields. According to our culture, neuroscience is the study of the brain and how it functions. However, art is seen in a creative and subjective way of life. Nonetheless, ideas sprouted by artists are often controversial. As we go deeper into the history of art and neuroscience, we can begin to see how the two fields can collide. In the 1960s, an artistic fab came about. The name of this fab is "Op Art". This type of art ran crazy through scientific and artistic fields. For the scientific side, many scientists were beginning to discover how the retina processes color and how the color of someone's iris could play a part in the color processing. Artists, however, began to take advantage of this new discovery and created art that had messed with people's perceptions...

Week 6: BioTech + Art

Image
This week, we discussed biotechnology and how it connects to art. Professor Vesna discusses the benefits that these two fields give to our society. She also discusses the importance of Joe Davis and his impact on this field. Joe Davis was one of the first to work with genes and bacteria and researches how sounds and light affect how bacteria responds to a stimulus. While science is rapidly growing and making huge advancements, scientists are now able to mutate living organisms. These mutations can sometimes create results that are eye-opening. According to an article, Jens Hauser, a Paris-based Bio-artist, claims that bio-tech is not just "about using scientific techniques:creating hybrids and manipulating live organisms" (Hauser). After looking at some of the art pieces that bio-art has produced, it seems very similar to a Frankenstein or Avant-Garde type material. It may be unique and different, however, bio-tech and art have combined to create amazing ideas through g...

Event #2 The Getty

Image
On Wednesday May 10, 2017, I decided to go to the Getty museum with my girlfriend. I had always seen pictures of the view from the Getty, but I have never got the chance to go inside and explore for myself. The experience begins on the tram up the steep hill where the Getty rests. As soon as you step off the tram, you instantly see statues and beautiful architecture. Once you turn the corner and you are presented with steps to go to the museum, a few fascinating sculptures appear to us, grandiose in size. Finally, we were able to enter the museum and I got to see some amazing paintings from many famous artists. One of the first exhibits I was able to explore was Robert Mappethorpe's exhibit. I had never heard of this artist previously, but right away I noticed his uniqueness. Many of his portraits are black and white. So, telling from his pictures, I could tell how much he emphasizes contrast and portraying a certain mood with his color choices. This was the first of many exh...

Midterm Project

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0zG437z8wJibHlDckZLVEpNRGM/view?usp=sharing