NanoTech + Art

In this week’s lectures, Dr. Gimzewski talks a lot about how Nanotechnology helps artist create artworks. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter on an atomic and molecular scale. The major fields of Nanotechnology include nanomaterial, nanoelectronic, nanosystem, nanobiotechnology and others.

NanoArt, as one of these fields, is a new form of art that combines art and Nanotechnology. This field emerges because the development of art and science always go hand in hand and there is no reason for art to stay away from nanotechnology. NanoArt reflects this interdependent relationship between art and science and shows how they are connected by technology.

In NanoArt, Artists create artworks through the various tools and techniques developed in nanoscience. For example, some of photographers prepare their materials and transfer their electron images to their computer in order to design a graphic art form. The images created by electrons are different from the photographic images that are created by photons in that the electron microscope images have more depth and natural 3D look.

As Professor mentioned in his lecture, Roman Lycurgus cup is also a typical example of NanoArt. This extraordinary cup is made of a very special type of glass called dichroic. The cup seems magical because the ancient cup could change color when held up to the light. The opaque green cup turns to a glowing translucent red when light is shone through it. It shows this magical effect because the glass of this cup contains tiny amounts of colloidal gold and silver. Even in the early period of history, nanotechnology has already appeared and been used in artworks. I was impressed by this technique and the beauty of Nanotechlogy.

Beyond all its artistic aspects, NanoArt also offer a way for public to understand the value nanotechnology easily.

Citations:nano art. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://austerechic.blogspot.com/2012/05/nano-art-by-frederik-de-wilde.html>."NanoArt." N.p., n. d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. <http://nanoart.org>."THE LAUREATES OF NANOART 2013." N.p., n. d. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. <http://www.fondation-nanosciences.fr/RTRA/en/659/laureats-nanoart.html>."Developing Molecular Manufacturing." n. page. Print. <http://www.crnano.org/developing.htm>.Lycurgus cup. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. 25 Nov 2013. <http://someinterestingfacts.net/what-is-plasmons/>.

Neurosci + Art

In this week’s lectures, Professor Vesna talked about the relationship of neuroscience and art. This relationship inspired me a lot. In my opinion, neuroscience affected art in many aspects because we use our brain to recognize, to create, and to appreciate art.

As Professor Vesna mentioned in her lecture, artists have figured out ways to create optical illusions based on their knowledge about the brain. They change depth and brightness of their works to make their art pieces more authentic and lively.

Take myself as an example. I went to Getty Center yesterday and found a really special painting. The painting, called Wheat stacks, Snow Effect, Morning, is created by Claude Monet. It features a wheat stacks near a painter’s house, which had been left out over the winter. I felt that the air and light in the painting were varying continually when I was staring at it. Thus, I was wondering why does it look more and more bright to my eyes? Then I did some research and found out that most people have three kinds of cones in the eye's retina: red, blue and green. This arrangement ensures the brain to compare the activities in two or three cones and create an image. Moreover, artists also take advantage of another phenomenon called “luminance”. They utilize special shadow and light patterns to make a painting appear brighter to the brain. Furthermore, when our brains recognize a color contrast but not a light contrast, an effect called "equal luminance" is created, which produces a sort of shimmering quality to the painting. This technique is indeed reflected in Monet’s painting as well.

Neuroscience is a science about our brain. Artists have to take advantage of neuroscience, especially about how the brain creates interprets visual stimuli, because we do not see art merely by our eye but in fact by our brains.

Citations:

Vesna, Victoria, prod. Radio. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5EX75xoBJ0>.

Monet, Claude. Wheat stacks, Snow Effect, Morning, 1891. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://www.zucapaca.com/best-of-monet/claude-monet-1890-wheatstacks-end-of-summer/>.

"Arts and Brain." N.p., n. d. Web. Web. 18 Nov 2013. <http://www.pinterest.com/cathymalchiodi/arts-and-brain-arts-and-neuroscience/>.

Huang, Mengfei. "The Neuroscience of Art." n. page. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. <http://www.stanford.edu/group/co-sign/Huang.pdf>.

ART + NEUROSCIENCE. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://www.roomsmagazine.com/index.php/2013/09/laurie-frick/>.

BioTech and Art

BioArt is a new word for me. As Professor mentioned in her lecture, there are some debates about how people define BioArt. I recognize the different viewpoints from different artists in defining this concept. As to me, BioArt encompasses a combination of technology, nature and art.

In the lectures, Professor Vesna introduced a lot of artists who work with biologists or geneticists, including Kathy High and Orlan. To be honest, I feel really shocked about how their imagination connected biology to art to the point that their work intimidates me.

I am interested in Edward Steichen and his exhibition. I have heard of Steichen for several years because I saw some posters from him while he worked for the fashion magazine <Vogue>. However, this is the first time for me to learn that he is also a horticulturalist. Then I did some research regarding his work. In 1936, Steichen exhibited a flower show in the Museum of Modern Art Archives. The exhibition was called Edward Steichen’s Delphiniums. Steichen applied Colcichine, a chemical mutagen, to induce chromosome doubling and thus produce unusually tall delphiniums. The show was considered the first intersection between genetic modification and art.

Another example I want to mention is molecular gastronomy. Cuisine is one of the most unique of all art forms. Molecular gastronomy is a relatively new term. It describes the art of selecting, preparing, serving and enjoying fine food. For instance, through molecular mixology, ingredients appear in forms such as caviar, jelly, foam, and even air. It certainly is extraordinary but surprisingly some of these techniques are relatively simple. It is the knowledge that allows us to transform food to another physical state. Gastronomy also utilizes scientific elements in the art of cooking, thus producing the perfect hybrid of Biotechnology and art.

Citations:

BioArt. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://www.faseb.org/About-FASEB/Scientific-Contests/BioArt.aspx>.

Vesna, Victoria, prod. BioArt Part V. Film. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7zHIdsFS3A>.

Delphiniums. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://www.gardendesign.com/ideas/art-botany-edward-steichens-delphiniums>.

"Edward Steichen’s 1936 Exhibition of Delphinium Blooms: An Art of Flower Breeding ." n. page. Web. <http://www.tylersfox.com/blog/?p=243>.

Molecular Cuisine Gastronomy. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. <http://www.aboutweirds.com/2013/04/modernist-molecular-cuisine-gastronomy.html>.

"Tom Parker Bowles takes us on a tour of the best restaurant in the world." n. page. Web. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1083068/El-Bulli-Tom-Parker-Bowles-takes-tour-best-restaurant-world.html>.