Space and Art

    In the lectures of space and art I learned many new things. I also saw a merge of all the topics, such as biotech, nanotech, robots, mathematics, and of course art. During the space race we learned many new things like creating new devices that could withstand space and from the curiosity of man we have seen and discovered new materials that can be useful for humans. What I thought was very interesting was the creation of a fuel depot in the future. It is estimated to be in place during the year 2020. This depot would use the water from asteroids and convert it into liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen to fuel the rockets. Another thing that could be useful is the asteroid mining. This would get us resources such as metals like nickel and platinum that would generate a lot of money.

    We seem to have a fascination with the unknown and this has lead us to go into the depths of space to see many different galaxies. The Power of Ten video showed us just how far and vast space is. I am skeptical to think that we would be able to live in space without our natural resources such as water, plants, and most importantly oxygen. But, science amazes and opens new doors to the unimaginable and maybe in the future we would create a device that would allow us to live off of the rays of sun (some type of cyborg perhaps).

    Ars ad Astra: The First Art Exhibition In Earth Orbit, is an art show in the Mir Space Station. This has pushed art into a new dimension. Art can now be seen in space and I think this is amazing. Amazing because there is now a new theme or idea; art can be launched into space so it can forever be floating through space! It will float into the depths of space until it disintegrates, lands somewhere, is found by an alien, or pushed out into another earth like planet. Who knows! We have yet to answer the question, “How far can you get?” and I do not believe we will because we die so young unless we make a high speed rocket that can push us far out into the dark and quiet world known as space.   





1. "Leonardo Space Art Project Visioneers." Leonardo Space Art Project Visioneers. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://spaceart.org/leonardo/vision.html>.

2. "Powers of Ten. Based on the film by Charles and Ray Eames. An Eames Office Website." Powers of Ten. Based on the film by Charles and Ray Eames. An Eames Office Website. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.powersof10.com/>.

3. "Ars Ad Astra, The 1st Art Exhibition in Earth Orbit on the Mir Space Station, Space Art, art-in-space." Ars Ad Astra, The 1st Art Exhibition in Earth Orbit on the Mir Space Station, Space Art, art-in-space. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.arsadastra.com/>.

4. "Asteroid mining by 2020: Robo-ships to dig space rocks for gold & fuel." - RT News. N.p., 12 Dec. 2011. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://rt.com/news/planetary-resources-asteroid-mining-835/>.

5. Bonsor, Kevin. "Valuable Asteroid Resources." HowStuffWorks. HowStuffWorks.com, n.d. Web. 28 July 2014. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/asteroid-mining1.htm>.

Nanotechnology and Art

   Nanotechnology is invisible to the human eye; it can be manipulated to serve us and can harm us. In our lectures, professor Gimzewski gave us many amazing examples of nanotechnology. It ranged from scanning tunneling microscope (STM) to self organization in nature also known as the golden ratio.

   What interested me the most about the STM was that you can move or propel atoms so they can chemically bond with other atoms and that manipulation makes patterns at a microscopic level.  Here is a beautiful example of this scan and here is a link that leads you to an art gallery of many STM pictures.

http://www.nanotech-now.com/Art_Gallery/Weiss-Group.htm

   When nanosizing materials such as gold it gives us different colors that give that special look in stain glass. When gold is nanosized it is seen as red or orange and this color depends on the size of the particle! Silver is seen as yellow! Here is a stain glass window using nanotechnology before it was even discovered!

   Nanotechnology can also give people without limbs or those in need of organs hope. Biomimicry is the imitation of the structure of other living creatures. There was an example of gecko feet but I was thinking more or a general reptilian structure. When a lizard’s tail is cut off its body generates a new one! This can be used in people without limbs (or so I think).

   Mimicry can also be used in clothing! The lotus flower has a waterproof skin that the droplets of water just slide off. This technology has inspired scientists to create self cleaning fabrics!

   In our reading I really enjoyed the nano-scape, this device allows us to access the nano world through touch! A magnetic force allows one to push around the invisible nano particles thus creating a invisible sculpture.

   From stain glass windows to invisible nano sculptures nanotechnology bridges the gap between art and science because it can take up many forms.

1. "art in the age of nanotechnology." Artabase. John Curtin Gallery, 30 Apr. 2010. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.artabase.net/exhibition/2104-art-in-the-age-of-nanotechnology>.

2. "From Nanotech to Nanoscience | Chemical Heritage Foundation." From Nanotech to Nanoscience | Chemical Heritage Foundation. Chemical Heritage Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 July 2014. 

3. <http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/media/magazine/articles/26-2-from-nanotech-to-nanoscience.aspx>.

"Nanotechnology: Small Science, Big Deal!." . Nanoscale Information Science Education, 31 Oct. 2011. Web. 27 July 2014. 

4. <http://www.nisenet.org/sites/default/files/catalog/uploads/8893/nanotechnology_slides_31oct11.pdf>.

"Nanotechnology Now." Nanotechnology Art Gallery. Weiss Group, n.d. Web. 27 July 2014. <http://www.nanotech-now.com/Art_Gallery/Weiss-Group.htm>.

5. Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. "Stained Glass in Medieval Europe". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/glas/hd_glas.htm (October 2001)

Event 4: Getty Museum - 18th-Century French Drawings from Los Angeles Collections

     What I want to focus on is the mathematical and art lecture because there was a lot of precise and architectural elements going on between the seventeenth and eighteenth century. The drawing exhibition featured multiple drawings from portraits to landscapes. These showed me the importance of getting features right from bodies and buildings. Two point perspective was key to getting everything in the right position. This use of mathematics was what helped these artists get the right proportions and to show depth in their pieces. Some were sketches showing the first states of the drawings and other were finished products that looked realistic. 

     As I entered a different room I began to see paintings and I related them to the drawings because paintings almost always start off as drawings first. You need to set up your blue print in order to know where to apply the oil paint on the canvas. I saw the progress of how using different colors and shades affected and brought out amazing and realistic perspective to the paintings; even more than the drawings themselves

   






       It seemed that art and architecture was extremely important during this time and it showed in their every day household items. There were clocks, mirrors, beds, carpets, tapestries, candles, cups, anything you could think of had a touch of architectural element to it. Architecture requires the use of mathematics, drawing, and of course physics to make sure you know how to structure the buildings so they would not fall apart. Columns were a huge part of architecture because they were the support system that held together the whole building. Along with the knowledge of the sciences, you require the skill to draw and plan out the architectural structure. The person designing the structure may have required help from an artist and this shows an actual encounter of the two cultures meeting. I do believe architecture is a subject that is in the third culture. 

I also found materials such as gems and minerals that were used in Psalters (books) that were ground up to show how colorful they were. (This brought me back to the Natural History Museum where I visited their gems and mineral exhibit). Not to mention that these books are full of art work and types of architectural displays.

Neuro-Science and Art

   The brain is a very intricate and fascinating thing. I think we are really obsessed in knowing why and how we work (the human body/mind). I do not think we will ever really know how we fully function or get all the answers. I also admire and respect all that study the brain because I have taken a bio psychology class and it was horrible. I lack the understanding of things I cannot see. If I cannot have it front of me real time or see it with my eyes I cannot understand it at all ( I don't know why that is).

   I feel like I say I do not understand the brain and I do not want to work with the brain or any aspect of it but I do! In my art I encounter my dreams and try to decipher them. I do keep a small notebook next to me so that if I do remember what I dreamed I write it down. A second thing I do is I try to show my childhood memories as best I can. These two things I can relate to in this weeks topic.

   Brainbow is an amazing creation because it helps to see the different neurons in the brain and distinguishes them from one another. It also helps map out the different  neurons to know where they are connected and where they go. The Brainbow process is very artistic and it has influenced many to make more of these images.

I cannot help but to think about the biotech lecture; there was an example of goldfish neuron drawings. WHAT!? Yeah, it is so mind blowing! I had to look around to find another example like this and I found the rodent neuron drawings! This is how it works; neurons/cells in a petri dish interact with the mechanical arms by sending electrode signals which triggers the arms to move. Which is so amazing! Here is a link to the site: http://cyberneticzoo.com/cyberneticanimals/2001-4-meart-rat-neuron-drawing-machine-symbiotica-australianamerican/ 

The results look like scribbles but I do think some are handsome.

   In our reading, NeuroCulture they stated that, "Neuroscience is a rich source of inspira- tion for the arts because of the universality of the questions it addresses". This is very true and I feel like all my fellow artists can agree. Our mind has millions of doors it can open and address and this gives so many options for artists! I found a website dedicated to Art of Science which is quite interesting.

I encourage you to look at these wonderful images!
 http://www.princeton.edu/artofscience/gallery2013/one.php%3Fid=414.html






1. "2001-4 - MEART Rat Neuron Drawing Machine - SymbioticA (Australian/American) - cyberneticzoo.com." cyberneticzoocom RSS. Symbotica, n.d. Web. 21 July 2014. <http://cyberneticzoo.com/cyberneticanimals/2001-4-meart-rat-neuron-drawing-machine-symbiotica-australianamerican/>.

2. "." . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://37.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m4gnh2R6mc1qbpwkro1_1280.jpg>.

3. "." . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://biomedicalcomputationreview.org/sites/default/files/u38/06-fall-meart-drawing.png>.

4. Frazzetto, Giovanni. Neuroculture. : Macmillan Publishers , . Print.

5. Vesna, Victoria. "Neuroscience-Mark Cohen.mov." YouTube. YouTube, 12 May 2012. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://youtu.be/eDq8uTROeXU>.

Bio-Technology and Art

    Bio-Technology was quite a shock to me. This was not the first time I have heard about it but I did learn a lot of new different experiments that took place. In last weeks lecture we learned about Orlan and I did a little research and did find her Harlequin coat which I thought had to do a little more with biology than Med-Tech.

   The Tissue Culture and Art Project was a little disturbing an strange to me. It involves the growing of leather without killing animals. It is grown from cells into a layer of tissue that is alive! WOW! This has never even crossed my mind! It was extremely mind blowing to think we can grow pieces of living cells to make things like jackets! It is still unbelievable to me!

   I did find the use of live animals unethical because it is a live creature that one is experimenting on. I understand that some people say that it is for the good of humanity but what about the good of the animals? Professor Vesna made a great point as to saying that the mouse and the human share a large percentage of DNA and that they are greatly related to us. We know this but we still experiment on them continuously like they are not really worth that much (we also see them as pests). I often do think of animals as I buy cosmetics or even groceries. We do not really know what they are thinking or what they feel.

   It is very unpleasant to me that we genetically engineer animals now so we can make them bigger for our use but in the long run we are torturing them. Chickens are unable to walk, turkeys cannot even mate because they are so big, and bulls are being engineered to produce healthy cows.

Our fruits and vegetables are also engineered; we consume these everyday not knowing what chemicals have been put into them. We often do not have a choice because that is all we have. That is true for my city; they do not carry organics. I do not think that we are ever going to get out of the genetically engineered foods because of how much we consume and the little space we have to grow produce.

On a more positive note! Bio tech has it's negatives and positives but I do think it is more positive than negative despite the experimentation. We find new ways of creating things that help us such as the tissue cultures. I found that you can grow a lot of things with just cells and maybe in the future we won't have to kill animals but instead grow our food in petri dishes. (Is that too weird? Let me know)











1. "The Tissue Culture & Art Project: Oron Cattes and lonat Zurr - Victimless Leather." . Fact HQ, n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://www.fact.co.uk/projects/sk-interfaces/the-tissue-culture-art-project-oron-cattes-and-lonat-zurr-victimless-leather.aspx>.

2. "." . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://www.topsixlist.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/genetically-modified-food.jpg>.

3. "." . N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/700/cache/lab-made-beef-burger-mark-post_70099_600x450.jpg>.

4. "Meet the Super Cow." YouTube. YouTube, 13 Feb. 2008. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://youtu.be/Nmkj5gq1cQU>.

5. Vesna, Victoria. "5 BioArt pt3." YouTube. YouTube, 17 May 2012. Web. 20 July 2014. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EpD3np1S2g&list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7>.

Event 3: Page Museum

The Page Museum is a museum dedicated to displaying the best fossils found at the La Brea Tar Pits. It is packed with tons of information about the living creatures that once lived on the grounds. The decision to attend this event was to see the Encounters show which showcases a sabber tooth cat puppet. The cat is life size as the scientists predict/know and it looked realistic with the features it has. Some of the features are the paws, face (moving mouth), and the eyes were very realistic. What this showed me was the understanding of a creature through examination of the bones/remains. The analysis/information found helps the puppeteer know how to move the creature and all the facial features (The walking is a little funny because a human cannot fully walk right like a four legged animal). I was unable to video the cat myself but I found a video of it online that I would like to show.

http://youtu.be/RvlGqt_zL6o?list=UUa31TAZ1i-GaASAnyPGpV_w

The museum is pretty small but there are a lot of interesting features integrated. This moving mastodon  was realistic in features. I would not say it is the most accurate thing in the world but it serves a purpose to show how a mastodon would have looked and moved.

The fossil lab is a great way of showing how they clean the fossils found at the pits. I really liked that each person has a small whiteboard explaining what they are doing to the fossils. They were all working on different parts of a mammoth called Zed. This was a great interaction between the workers and visitors. I fond that when we I went to the Natural History Museum I did pass by their fossil exhibit as well but it was not as social as the Page's. This lab showed everything they were doing and all the tools and machines they used. I felt like I was right beside them while they were working even though there is a glass wall.










Another great feature was the small theater they had that explained how these creatures are found in the pits, how they perished there, and how they finally got extinct. They also showed us the layers of fossils that showed each living creatures life span and that is how they calculated in what time they were living. I found it quite educational for children and adults. "It's called a saber tooth cat not a saber tooth tiger" that was the last bit of the movie.

There was also another great moving piece of a saber tooth cat eating a ground sloth. I found it to be a little disturbing but that is how animals hunt and eat each other. A fun fact is that there are not dinosaurs at the page museum because they were already extinct by the time the pits came into play.

Event 2: LACMA - Metropolis || Exhibit

    As I walked trough the doors of the Broad building at LACMA, I heard a distinct sound of a busy city. I walked towards it not really knowing what to expect (maybe just a little) but it was amazing seeing Metropolis II by Chris Burden. It was like I was a child again! A lot of memories and distinct places came to mind when looking at this massive piece; such as LA in traffic, a childhood imagination when playing with toy cars, the busy streets shown in New York, and most of all the city life. As people surrounded the massive piece it added to the experience; the conversations between the people, the walking around trying to look at every angle of the piece, and you could feel the vibes of positivity all around.You could not help yourself to just be happy to be around this piece.




   The whole structure of the piece resembled a city (metropolis) in motion and this can be related to the third culture as we learned the first week of class. You cannot help but to think about how much time and effort it took to make this piece. This sculpture is a kinetic sculpture which has steel beams that form an electric grid that is interwoven with many other roads for the cars can run on. There was a lot of planning and meticulous engineering so this sculpture can fully operate. You can see in this video as to how many things are really in the piece.

                                                                                                                                                               Here are two videos of the piece; one in action and the other turned off. You can see the reactions of people while it is on and when it is off. I found it quite funny when the conductor turned it off and people started to complain and leave. It was so silent like someone had killed the mood in the gallery space.







   As I walked through the space I saw many more pieces that could incorporate the science and art. Like this piece called Miracle Mile by Robert Irwin. He uses light and color as his material. His work plays with the architecture and with the outside since it is seen through the windows it faces.






I was also really surprised to see Richard Sera's work because it is massive and it always makes me wonder, "How do they move these things?!". I also get a little freaked out when I stand next to them because they look so unbalanced (but they are) and I think i'm going to knock over the massive metal wall.

My favorite; Metropolis of course!

Event 1: Natural History Museum - Gems and Minerals Exhibit

   After reading about the two cultures I set out to find this example at the Natural History Museum. I then remembered that they have a huge collection of gems and minerals. I thought this would be relevant because gems and minerals are used in our everyday lives including the sciences and arts.

    Minerals are used in everyday household items, medical tools, technological devices, and even art supplies. Tungsten is used in light bulbs and pens; which are used every day. What I want to say about this experience and trip to the museum was that I found a lot of minerals and gems that were used in technology and in art. There are different forms and uses for them.

   The first thing I want to talk about is art; it has many shapes and forms, and uses a large number of materials. Graphite  is soft, easily powdered, and opaque. And many artists use this mineral to draw/sketch and it is an essential tool. For photographers the film they use is coated in different salts, silver and other silver bearing minerals. A main material that I use in my art is ceramic; clay is a form of dirt that is easily shaped when wet and it is strong and rigid when fired.  When glazing there is a large amount of minerals in the glazes that serve as a coloring/decorative purposes but it also creates a waterproof piece.  Glaze can contain silica, sodium, potassium, calcium, flux, alumina, iron oxide, copper carbonate, cobalt carbonate and many more minerals.

   Here are some examples of the possibilities you can get when glazing. 

   Minerals are also used in technological devices such as electrical machinery, fluorescent lamps in x-ray tubes, cell phones, computers, medical devices such as mri scanners and cat scan devices. The possibilities are endless with minerals. 

   Some minerals are cut to reveal what is on the inside. They are cut using special machines depending on the hardness of the material.

   I was amazed as to what you can make out of these minerals. Here is a box made out of malachite and sugilite. 

    The second section of the exhibition is gems. I always thought that gems were just pretty rocks that can be looked at or worn as jewels. This is true but gems are also used in painting pigments. During the Medieval times gem and mineral pigments were used in paintings; they were very expensive. A color that is recognizable in manuscripts is the component azurite and ultramarine.Let's not forget gold, gold was an essential material in books for decoration purposes. I also found out that pigments were used as make up in the Egyptian times.

   Here are different gems and minerals with different hardness and softness which make different marks. Each mark has a distinct pigment and texture depending on the material.







   I was astonished at the intense and intricate designs you could make.

   It takes great patience and skill to cut a gem and to make it look like a piece of jewelry. Here we see some before and after of stones that are now beautiful pieces of jewelry.

   After going to see all these gems and minerals and find out about their uses I can say that they play a big role in the tools for science and art and without them we would not have many things. As I was leaving the museum I saw a very pretty wall made out of simple rocks and how useful it was. I now think of all the things I use and what was used to make it and how much work was put into it.

    I now leave you with some of the things I thought were aesthetically pleasing to look at and maybe you can come up with some of their uses.