elisesDESMA9

Elise_Schroeder_Desma9_Final.pdf

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Robert Gero’s exhibit called “Infinity Structures: Paradoxical Spaces,” incorporates math, philosophy, and art.  The exhibit was constructed with Styrofoam, and the structure was configured throughout the entire room with different pieces coming out of the ground and others going into the ceiling.  The purpose of this project was to build a seemingly impossible structure, where its internal dimensions exceeded its external dimensions.  The interior of the structure, which was made up of the Styrofoam beams, expanded infinitely within the constraints of the physical walls.

Robert Gero’s work is an empirical construction, in that it is a project that must be experienced rather than thought about logistically, in order to grasp the infinite structure.  Mathematically, Gero’s structure represents the concept of achieving infinity and philosophically, it represents the paradox of achieving the infinite structure.

His work is extremely creative and once again, exemplifies how art has no bounds when creativity is involved.  I find his exhibit unique because it not only demonstrates how art and mathematics are intertwined, but it also suggests the philosophical reasoning behind the concept.  The simplicity of the presentation itself, and the structure occupying the entire room, left space for the audience to use their own imagination in attempting to grasp the concept of infinity.

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Kathy High’s exhibition called “Waste Matters: You Are My Future,” was an exhibit that explored immune systems and showed research on how immune systems maintain themselves and how bacteria plays a role in our bodies. 

Kathy High’s inspiration for this project came from her own personal experience of having Crohn’s disease.  Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract.   Her work in this exhibit is very important to her because it speaks to the condition that she has and as a result, it is something that she is passionate about.

Within the presentation room, there were displays of waste, as well as artwork that portrayed creative pieces incorporating the body and her self-portraits.  Kathy’s work opened my eyes up to the endless possibilities that creativity offers.  I found her exhibit incredibly unique and out of the ordinary.  I love that she is able to use her disease as inspiration for her work because it reveals her determined and positive attitude toward her condition.

Some of the specific biological research that Kathy did as part of this exhibit was looking into gut biomes as well as fecal microbial transplants to explore how the bacteria functions in our body.  Overall, her work informed her audience on how immune systems and bacteria affect our bodies.

“Waste Matters: You Are My Future” was an exhibit that made me think outside of the box.  It was a wonderful example of how such a deep biological, scientific study can be presented in an artistic form.

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For my first event, I visited the Hammer Museum.  As I was walking through the museum one particular exhibit caught my eye.  It was Charles Gaines’ Gridwork.  This exhibit consisted of a collection of beautiful, vibrant trees that Charles Gaines had created through the integration of mathematics and art.

Each piece of art contained a painted tree on graph paper, overlaid with a piece of Plexiglas with another gridded painted tree.  One thing that struck me was that from afar, the paintings look like normal, colorful trees, however, if you examine the tree closely, you will see that each small square has a number in it.  Charles Gaines designed his work so that the tree was gridded and drawn out mathematically and symmetrically. 

As discussed in week two’s lecture on math and art, Charles Gaines’ display in the Hammer Museum serves as a wonderful example of how mathematics and art are intertwined.  I believe that the way he intentionally portrays the mathematical design behind his artwork is the one detail that makes his work so unique.  His collection of grid work is not only visually stunning, but also special because of its integration with graph paper.

I would highly recommend visiting this exhibit because of its incredible creativity.  Charles Gaines’ grid work would be beneficial to see because it opens up your eyes to a kind of artwork that is uncommon and extraordinary.  It is proof that mathematics and art are in fact related and used together to create masterpieces.

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Artists love to use their imaginations and in a certain sense, space requires imagination, which is why art and space go together so well.  Space is so vast that it leaves us with endless room to use our imagination.  The idea of space and of the unknown possibilities of space intrigue artists today to create works of art that encompass those ideas.

Xu Zhen is an artist who created a project called In Just a Blink of an Eye.  In this project, performers are harnessed in and set in positions that are normally only seen for a fraction of a second when someone is mid way through falling to the ground.  However, the performers are stuck in these positions, illustrating what it is like to defy both gravity and time.  This illusion is captivating because it is as if the performer is frozen in a moment in time that is normally impossible to be frozen in.  The fact that the performer defies gravity in this project is an incredible site to see for the viewer and it illustrates the possibilities that space has to offer.

Another compelling art project done by Richard Garriott actually created art in space.  He went into space and created a box where inside of it he taped pieces of paper on each of the sides.  From there, he took paint and let the droplets float around inside of the box until they hit a piece of paper.  His goal was to compare this project to that of Jackson Pollock’s work where he splattered paint onto a canvas.  Richard Garriott discovered that when he “splattered” the paint in space, the droplets actually stuck to the paper and dried forming spheres rather than drying flat onto the paper like they did on earth (Art in Space)  His project allows us to see a physical change and direct effect of space on art.

.The limitlessness of space creates limitless possibilities for artists and their imaginations’.

"Art in Space." Art in Space — OurSpace. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2015. <http://www.our-space.org/materials/states-of-matter/art-in-space>.

Delgado, Kasia. "The List: Art in Space." Financial Times. The Financial Times Limited, 2015. Web. 30 May 2015. <http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/0a8d608a-222a-11e4-9d4a-00144feabdc0.html#slide0>.

Forde, Kathleen. "Dancing on the Ceiling: Art & Zero Gravity." Dancing on the Ceiling: Art & Zero Gravity Curated by Kathleen Forde : EMPAC Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center : Troy, NY USA. Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 2010. Web. 30 May 2015. <http://zerogravity.empac.rpi.edu/>.

"PERFORMA07." PERFORMA07. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 May 2015. <http://07.performa-arts.org/artists.php?id=22&detail=true>.

"Zu Xhen : In Just a Blink of the Eye." Dancing on the Ceiling. Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 2010. Web. 30 May 2015. <http://zerogravity.empac.rpi.edu/zhen/>.

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Nanotechnology has opened up an entire new dimension of art and has created so many more possibilities for artists.  It has allowed us to explore deeper into scientific areas that we would not be able to reach without nanotechnology.

Paul Thomas and Kevin Waxworthy’s project Nanoessence is a perfect example of that.  “Nanoessence is an interactive audio-visual installation where the viewer will interface with the visual and sonic presentation through his or her own breath” (visiblespace).  It uses a single HaCat skin cell to compare life and death through an atomic force microscope down to the nano level.  This technology provides us with the opportunity to explore this topic and physically experience the comparison between life and death to the best of our ability. 

An article that I read online talked about how nanotechnology is not something that can be seen because it deals with molecules and atoms that are too small to be seen with the human eye.  The article went on to say, well what better way to bring an abstract, miniscule thing to life than through art?  Art is the connection between nanotechnology in its abstract, miniscule form and its visually attainable form.  Art allows us to see a representation of what nanotechnology is actually doing.  In the project Nanoessence, the artistic display of the breath and how it interacts with life and death is displayed through nanotechnology.

"Art in the Age of Nanotechnology." Art.base. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2015. <https://art.base.co/event/2104-art-in-the-age-of-nanotechnology>.

Gimzewski, Jim. "Nanotech Jim Pt1." YouTube. YouTube, 21 May 2012. Web. 24 May 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7jM6-iqzzE>.

Lovgren, Stefan. "Can Art Make Nanotechnology Easier to Understand?"National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 23 Dec. 2003. Web. 24 May 2015. <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/12/1223_031223_nanotechnology.html>.

"Nanoessence." Visiblespace. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2015. <http://visiblespace.com/blog/?page_id=122>.

"What Is Nanotechnology?" What Is Nanotechnology? N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2015. <http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition>.

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Because we know so little about dreams, artists have a huge amount of room to use their imagination and get creative (Professor Vesna).  Some people use dreams as a way of escaping reality and others simply use dreams to explore their imagination (Real Meaning of Dreams). 

Heavily influenced by Sigmund Freud’s ideas of the unconscious, the Surrealist movement inspired artists to incorporate dreams and the unconscious in their work.  One of the most famous artists whose work depicted a dream like scene was Salvador Dali’s The Persistence of Memory.  “One can see through his artwork Dali’s fascination with the fleeting state of mind between sleep and consciousness, dream and reality, sanity and insanity” (Real Meaning of Dreams).

Through his painting it is easy to tell that dreams open up artists’ imaginations and allow them to expand their creativity and create artwork that is technically unrealistic.

Another art form that incorporates dreams and the unconscious is in the film industry.  One recent, popular film called Inception by Christopher Nolan was based off of the idea of a thief who infiltrates the subconscious of people to learn their secrets. 

I think the reason why the unconscious and dreams are such popular themes among movies and artists is because we are fascinated by the endless possibilities that the idea of dreams and the unconscious give us.  There is so much room for creativity and imagination within those ideas that the directions in which they can be used are limitless.  Not only do dreams captivate people and intrigue audiences, but they allow artists ways to create unique masterpieces.

"Dream Art and Creativity." Dream Art and Creativity. N.p., 2007. Web. 18 May 2015. <http://www.realmeaningofdreams.com/dream-art.html>.

"2 / Dreams and Visions." Art Through Time: A Global View. Annenburg Foundation, 2015. Web. 18 May 2015. <http://learner.org/courses/globalart/theme/2/index.html>.

Gregoire, Carolyn. "8 Famous Ideas That Came From Dreams (Literally)." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 16 Nov. 2013. Web. 18 May 2015. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/16/famous-ideas-from-dreams_n_4276838.html>.

"Inception." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 18 May 2015. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inception>.

Vesna, Victoria. "Art and Neuroscience Part 2." YouTube. YouTube, 17 May 2012. Web. 18 May 2015. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFv4owX3MZo>.

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Based upon what I have learned this far in this class, I can already tell that there are no limits to human creativity.  Biotechnology and art, according to the lecture on the two cultures, would certainly be considered parts of two distinct, separate worlds… biotech coming from the culture of math and science and art coming from the culture of art.  However, if you explore biotechnology and the complex, creative projects and studies that have been done in the field, you will come to see that biotechnology is in fact an artistic field.

Edward Steichen is a perfect example of how biotechnology (and in his case, hybridization) and art are intertwined.  In his work he crossbred flowers, particularly delphiniums, to create different flower breeds.  He displayed his flowers in museums and his work is well known and recognized in the artistic culture (Hartmann).

I think it is amazing to see how people like Steichen can stretch the expectations and boundaries that people hold on the capacity of creativity.  Some people believe that there are limits to human creativity and they do not see Steichen’s work as a piece of art.  On the contrary, there are many people who believe that human creativity has no bounds and Steichen’s work is a testament to that claim.

I think that we should all pursue the things that we are passionate about and if we do that, we will find a way to express ourselves creatively in whatever field that might be.

BioTech and Art Part 5. Dir. Victoria Vesna. Perf. Victoria Vesna. 2015. YouTube.

Delgado, Rick. "How Artists Are Blending Biotechnology And Art."MakeUseOf. N.p., 8 May 2015. Web. 10 May 2015. <http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/artists-blending-biotechnology-art/>.

Hartmann, Celia. "EDWARD STEICHEN ARCHIVE: DELPHINIUMS BLUE (AND WHITE AND PINK, TOO)." InsideOut. The Museum of Modern Art, 8 Mar. 2011. Web. 10 May 2015. <http://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2011/03/08/edward-steichen-archive-delphiniums-blue-and-white-and-pink-too>.

Stippl, Hannah. "Delphinium, Delphinium and More Delphinium."Delphinium, Delphinium and More Delphinium. Research Catalogue, 25 June 2014. Web. 10 May 2015. <http://www.researchcatalogue.net/view/88036/88037>.

"What Is Biotechnology?" What Is Biotechnology? Biotechnology Industry Organization, 2015. Web. 10 May 2015. <https://www.bio.org/articles/what-biotechnology>.

elisesDESMA9

Elise_Schroeder_Desma9_Midterm.pdf

elisesDESMA9

I found this week’s topic quite interesting because I had previously never thought of how medical technologies influenced art.  When Professor Vesna started off with discussing how years after her art class she realized how important it was to study the human bone structure and all of the details in the human body in order to be an artist, it really made me think.  Artists focus so much time and effort perfecting the drawing of a human body.  With the development of medical technologies such as the x-ray, first discovered by Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen and the MRI, first invented by Raymond Vahan Damadian, artists are able to take a closer look at the human body (Professor Vesna). 

The human body is an inspiration for artists and because of medical technology artists are able to expand their creative abilities in relation to the human body.  For example, the artist and jewelry designer, Emily Watson uses her inspiration from anatomy and geography to create jewelry that allows her to comment on the physical world and share how we are a part of it (Emily Watson).  I found Emily Watson’s work fascinating because it goes to show that the human body is not limited in its inspiration for artists who draw, in fact, the human body and medical technology serve as stimulus for artists of all kinds, even jewelry designers.

Lastly, when Professor Vesna discussed how our media and entertainment is full of medical practices and surgeries, it immediately made me think of the popular TV show called Grey’s Anatomy.  Grey’s Anatomy is one of my favorites shows and it is extremely well received today.  The show takes place in a hospital and every episode contains multiple different surgeries and medical crises.  We as humans are intrigued by our own bodies.  Medical cases are abundant and popular among our media entertainment today.  Clearly, there is no bound on the influence that the human body and medicine have on our culture and artists today.

"About Grey's Anatomy TV Show Series - ABC.com." ABC. Abc, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2015. <http://abc.go.com/shows/greys-anatomy/about-the-show>.

Human Body and Medical Technologies. Dir. Victoria Vesna. Perf. Victoria Vesna. 2012. YouTube.

Human Body and Medical Technologies Part 3. Dir. Victoria Vesna. Perf. Victoria Vesna. 2012. YouTube.

Medlej, Joumana. "Human Anatomy Fundamentals: Basic Body Proportions."Design & Illustration Tuts+. Envato Pty Ltd., 4 Nov. 2013. Web. 24 Apr. 2015. <http://design.tutsplus.com/articles/human-anatomy-fundamentals-basic-body-proportions--vector-18254>.

Watson, Emily. "List of Galleries That Currently Carry My Work:." Emily Watson. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2015. <http://www.metalemily.com/pages/Galleries.html>.

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With the development and advancement of technology today, new art forms are being created and becoming popular.  Looking at Apple in particular, lately I have noticed advertisements on billboards driving down the freeway and blown up on the walls of the Apple store displaying photos taken by individuals with their iPhone as well as drawings created on various iPhone apps.  The pictures and drawings that Apple is showing off are amazing.  Although this kind of art may be different than what we would normally view as original artwork, I believe that we all desire to express our creativity in one way or another and with the growing use of technology in our daily lives, we are finding ways to use that technology to manifest our artistic abilities. 

(Billboard that says "Shot on iPhone 6")

In Walter Benjamin’s piece The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, he discusses how mechanical reproduction puts an end to uniqueness and originality; however, I think it can be seen through the iPhone, for example, that authentic work is still created today in the midst of mechanical reproduction.

To look back and think about how Apple released their first iPhone in 2007 and to see how far technology has advanced today is incredible.  I think that with the overwhelming dependence that we have on technology today, it can be seen in a negative or positive light depending on your perspective.  We do have the opportunity to see it positively, in the sense that the mechanical production of technological devices has led to the invention of new ways for us to express our creativity, as seen through the iPhone’s photography capabilities.  I am excited to see what new opportunities technology will allow us to express artistically and creatively in the future.

(Shot taken on iPhone 6 by Gabby K. using the apps Camera and VSCO Cam)

"Apple - IPhone 6 World Gallery." Apple. Apple Inc, 1 Jan. 2015. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. 

<https://www.apple.com/iphone/world-gallery/>.

Griswold, Andrew. "17 Outstanding Photos from Apple's 'Shot on IPhone 6' World Gallery." Fstoppers Photography News and Community for Creative Professionals RSS. Fstoppers, 10 Mar. 2015. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. <https://fstoppers.com/contests/17-outstanding-photos-apples-shot-iphone-6-world-gallery-61493>.

Robotics Part 1 Lecture. Perf. Victoria Vesna. 2015. Film.

"The Spread of Industrialization and Its Phases." Modern World History Interactive Textbook. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. <http://webs.bcp.org/sites/vcleary/ModernWorldHistoryTextbook/IndustrialRevolution/responsestolR.html

Zohn, Harry. "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction." Walter Benjamin. Schocken/Random House, 1 Feb. 2005. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. <https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/benjamin.htm>.

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The crucial role that math plays in creating art is often times overlooked.  It is important to go back and recognize the ways in which math is incorporated into works of art and how famous artists came up with revolutionary ideas that changed artists approach to drawing.

This week’s lecture revealed that math and art are much more intertwined than you might think.  Buckminster Fuller stated that we were all born as geniuses, creative and with the ability to be whatever we wanted to be, however, we become “de-geniused” when we enter into the educational system and start to believe the lie that math and art are unrelated.  Brunelleschi was credited to be the first person to properly use linear perspective in about 1413; he studied geometry to develop his ideas on perspective. And lastly, the golden ratio is a technique artists use, as shown in the Parthenon, to design a perfectly symmetrical building.    These are only three examples of how art and mathematics are related, however, there are infinitely many more ways we could show their connection.

Leonardo da Vinci was brilliant in the way he incorporated math into his artwork.  His piece of work known as The Last Supper is a perfect example of one-point linear perspective.  This perspective uses a single vanishing point to create an illusion of depth.  Not only that, but da Vinci’s famous work called the Vitruvian Man is a depiction of how math is in art.  The Vitruvian Man by da Vinci is meant to resemble how the human body is perfectly proportioned and how architects should use those proportions to design and create perfect buildings.

Mathematics is the magic behind all brilliant artwork.  It is the backbone for the design in architecture, and the juxtaposition of math, art, and science, reveals the complex mathematical formulas behind creative masterpieces.

"Golden Ratio." Golden Ratio. MathsIsFun.com, 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/golden-

ratio.html>.

"Leonardo Da Vinci's Last Supper – ItalianRenaissance.org." Italian Renaissance. ItalianRenaissance.org, 20 June 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://www.italianrenaissance.org/a-closer-look-leonardo-da-vincis-last-supper/>.

Paralle. Lesson 3: Vanishing Points and Looking at Art (n.d.): n. pag. Marc Frantz, 2000. Web. <http://www.cs.ucf.edu/courses/cap6938-02/refs/VanishingPoints.pdf>.

Vesna, Victoria. “Mathematics-pt1-ZeroPerspectiveGoldenMean.mov.” Cole UC online. Youtube, 9 April 2012. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMmq5B1LKDg&feature=player_embedded>

"Vitruvian Man, The Proportions of a Human Figure." Leonardo Da Vinci. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://www.davincilife.com/vitruvianman.html>.

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My name is Elise Schroeder and I have personally experienced the divide between two cultures, as C.P. Snow puts it, the divide between the literary intellectuals and the scientists.  Coming into UCLA I was declared as a pre business economics major.  My mind was set on getting a degree in business economics, as in high school my strong suit was always math and science.  To my surprise, after taking multiple courses at the university, I realized I was more interested in subject matters such as sociology and I began to see that my interests were changing.  It is funny because, as touched on in this weeks lecture, on campus, switching from a business economics major to possibly communication studies feels like entering into a completely different world.  I believe that coming to UCLA has really highlighted the intense separation that we have created between north and south campus majors.  The video “Changing Education Paradigms” points out that our educational system has been teaching us to separate the two cultures since we were very young, so the problem stems from a young age and I am becoming more eye opened to it now as a college student.

Not only have I noticed the divide within the majors and educational system at UCLA, but I have also noticed it throughout most of my life in my dream of becoming an interior designer.  People would always comment on how it was so “interesting” that I loved math and science, yet I wanted to be an interior designer.  They commented on it as if the two things were worlds apart.

It is so easy to see all of the different aspects of our lives where our culture has created the divide between the two cultures of art and science, however, it is also clear from the lecture this week that there shouldn’t be a divide at all.  In fact, in “On Creativity,” David Bohm explains how creativity does not only dwell within the artists and literary intellectual culture, but creativity is extremely prevalent among the scientists as well.  Many common threads connect the two cultures, however our own culture today teaches us otherwise.  Today we live in a culture that is dependent upon technology, and as Kevin Kelly points out in his piece “The Third Culture,” he sees that for our culture, technology is changing our perspective on the world.  With my appreciation for math and science and my simultaneous aspiration to be an interior designer, I hope I can be one example to help close the gap between the two cultures that exist today.

Bohm, D. "On Creativity." JSTOR. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.

Changing Education Paradigms. RSA Animate, n.d. 2010.

Kelly, Kevin. "The Third Culture." The Third Culture. N.p., n.d. Web. Feb. 1998.

Snow, C. P. “Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution.” Reading. 1959. New York: Cambridge UP, 

        1961. Print.

Two Cultures Part 1.  Victoria Vesna. 2012.