Event: Getty Museum

My time at the Getty Museum was enjoyable, and I would definitely recommend it to others. The Getty Museum is huge, and you start off by parking your car in a lot that is away from the museum. You actually have to take a shuttle to get to the museum and I actually thought this was interesting because it could be a tactic of the museum to shuttle people through the tree's to prepare you for their art. What stuck out to me most was the outdoor garden. Normally, I wouldn't think much about the design of the garden but after a few of our lectures, particularly the one on mathematics and two cultures, I could see aspects of the garden differently. After doing my own research on the garden, I found this quote by the designer of the garden, Robert Irwin. Irwin says that the garden "Is a sculpture in the form of a garden, which aims to be art." I thought this related to our class in the aspect that acts as a buffer for people who don't know much about art. For example, I saw the garden and could appreciate its beauty but to be honest I didn't initially see its design and intentions of being considered a sculpture of art. As I look back on my time at the Getty I can see how technology and art played a huge part in its design. The center of the garden has green bushes in an artistic circular formation. Surrounding the bushes is a fountain that streams water down rocks and into a pool that forms around the bushes. I can now see that Irwin incorporated many aspects into the creation of his sculpture garden, including mathematics to make sure the dimensions and symmetry is correct. Overall, I really enjoyed my time at the Getty and would recommend this event to others.

EVENT: The Museum Of Jurassic Technology

Upon walking into the Museum I was handed a small flyer, and on the back it said, “The learner must be led away from familiar objects toward the unfamiliar, guided along, as it-were, a chain of flowers into the mysteries of life.” That quote pretty much sums up my experience at The Museum of Jurassic Technology, completely and utterly unfamiliar, mysterious and absolutely bizarre. At first I was roaming from exhibit to exhibit irritated that I could not understand what was going on. There were strange mucky smells, the light was dim and there were weird animal noises and overhead speakers with voices about the exhibit, all of which made no sense to me and I could find little connections between what was being said and what I was looking at. Overall, my initial experience of the museum was, for a lack of a better word, weird. However, it got better. After wondering downstairs, I went upstairs and grabbed a cup of tea and cookie, and began asking a worker what she loved most about the museum. She told me she loved how culturally diverse and un-discriminatory the museum was and how no exhibit was the same or interpreted the same. She said that often time people leave the museum angry, saying “I just don’t get it,” but the reality is, whatever you think and whatever you perceive from the exhibits is the answer.     

            Although not everything in the museum was completely random, I do remember a specific exhibit that directly related to our class. It was an exhibit dedicated to the first species to inhabit the moon. In lecture, we talked about the Russian’s sending Laika, a stray dog from Moscow, to the moon. This was my favorite exhibit at the museum because it creatively and artistically displayed this dog’s journey to space, and acted as a memorial for the dog. As a dog lover this is a sad story that the dog never mad it back to earth, but I liked how the museum had pictures of the dog on display as well as descriptions underneath each one almost acting as a memorial. All in all I was completely mind blown by all the diverse, unique, and culturally mysterious displays, but in the end I can see why people enjoy this museum for it’s individuality and I would recommend people to visit this museum, but would advise them to enter with an open mind.

You weren't allowed to take pictures at this event but I was able to sneak in a few:

Week 9 Space + Art

This weeks lecture was about space and art as well as incorporating material and ideas from other weeks. In lecture Professor discussed the dominance of macro and micro research in space. She also noted the dominant role nano technology is playing in space exploration and research. In addition, space topics also incorporate mathematic ideas. Copernicus was the first scientist to map out the solar system by mathematical detail, combining science, space and math. His work was groundbreaking for scientists that studied space because he established the concept of the sun at the center of the solar system with the orbits of planted around the sun. 

(NASA is using a Nanosatelite in space for anti-satellite weapon countermeasure)

(Copernicus mathematical model of the solar system)

I also enjoyed the lecture that explained the origins of each planets names. Professor stated that each planet was named after Roman deities. Each planet, aside from Earth, were named after Greek and Roman god and goddesses. Mercury is the god of commerce and travel because of the way it moves so quickly across the sky. Venus is the goddess of love and beauty because of its brightness and beauty in the sky. Mars is the god of war, due to its red color. Jupiter is the king of the gods, because it is the largest planet in the solar system. Saturn is the god agriculture. Uranus is named after the Greek deity of the Heavens. Neptune was named after the Roman god of the sea, because of its stunning blue color. And finally, Pluto was named after the god of the underworld, due to the fact that its location is so far from the sun. I found the names of the planets really interesting because its something I have never thought about before. I think that Roman and Greek mythology connects with art because of its artistic and creative history. There are countless pictures, paintings, books, songs and movies about Greek and Roman mythology and love to see the way that it integrated with the naming of the planets.

(Each planet is unique in color, location, size, and shape, and is named accordingly)

Works Cited

"The Copernican Model: A Sun-Centered Solar System." The Copernican Model: A Sun-Centered Solar System. UTK, n.d. Web. 27 May 2015.

"Nanotechnology in Space." Nanowerk. Nanowerk, n.d. Web. 27 May 2015.

Bonestell. "Bonestell - Home." Bonestell. Bonestell LLC, n.d. Web. 27 May 2015.

"How Do Planets and Their Moons Get Their Names?" Starchild. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 May 2015.

"The Copernican Model(a.k.a Sun Centered)." Polaris Project Evening Star. Iowa State University, n.d. Web. 27 May 2015.

Nanotecnology WEEK 8

This week’s material on Nanotechnology was the most difficult unit for me to understand that we have covered thus far. Prior to this unit I had never thought about nanotechnology, let alone knew that it is fundamental to seeing and controlling individuals atoms and molecules. Because everything on earth is composed of atoms (food, cloths, buildings, and organisms) this unit helped expand my understanding of how small, but vast and powerful, nanotechnology is to science and also its significance to art.

(There are 1000 or so nano products currently on the market. Above is a few.)

I found the lecture video that describes Nanotechnologies connect to art and nature very interesting. First, it is interesting to note that although the invention of advanced microscopes made identifying atoms possible, these tiny atoms have existed throughout all of time. I enjoyed hearing about the self-organization process of atoms in shells, snowflakes, trees, and in particular the Blue Morpho butterfly. When looked at from a distance the Blue Morpho butterfly has a mesmerizing blue reflection but when actually examined at the micro atom level its complexion does not reflect what it actually looks like, that is, the atoms have self-organized, which has amazingly manipulated the design of the butterfly.

While doing my own research on this field, I discovered an article that looked at the way nanoscale materials have been used for centuries. Although this is a fairly new area of science and technology, artists have been using nanotechnology even before the modern era. For example, the beautiful medieval stained glass windows that you see in old churches were affected at the nanoscale through the process used to create the glass. The various sizes of gold and silver particles produced colors inside the stained glass windows. Today, artists, and scientists are taking advantage of the manipulation of materials at the nanoscale to create stronger, lighter, and increased chemical reactivity than their other competitors.

Works Cited

"What Is Nanotechnology?" Nano.Gov. National Nanotechnology Initiative, n.d. Web. 19 May 2015.

"Mimicking Nature's Nanotechnology: From a Butterfly Wing to Anti-counterfeit Technologies." Sustainable Nano. The Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, 20 Jan. 2015. Web. 19 May 2015.

"What Is Nanotechnology?" CRN. Center for Responsible Nanotechnology, n.d. Web. 19 May 2015.

"From Nanotech to Nanoscience | Chemical Heritage Foundation." CHF. Chemical Heritage Foundation, n.d. Web. 19 May 2015.

"Thinking Smaller: How Nanoscience Can Help Us Understand Nature's Many Microbiomes." The Kavil Foundation. Kavli Foundation, n.d. Web. 19 May 2015.

EVENT #1

A few weeks ago I attended the event “Waste Matters: You Are My Future” by Kathy High. Kathy High, who was present at the event, suffers from Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s disease is an inflammatory bowel disease that causes swelling inside the lining of the digestive tract and can cause abdominal pain, diarrhea, weight loss, and fatigue. Kathy is an artist, but also studies medicine, science and technology. In particular Kathy has explored the possibilities of fecal transplantation to help individuals struggling with autoimmune disorders.

            I would definitely recommend this event to other students because it’s fascinating to see how art can be a positive way to educate the public about scientific possibilities. In addition, this event provided a lot of firsts for me. As a Sociology major, I had never been to south campus, I had never been to an art exhibition, and I really didn’t know much about Crohn’s disease, so this event was very eye opening.

            I went to the event with a friend, and when we first got there we didn’t understand what was going on. After reading up on the various signs on display it was interesting to see the creative ways that Kathy used her own art to try and further fecal transplantation research and to inform the public of this new field of medicine.

            My experiences at this event reminded me most of the lecture material from week 4 on MedTech + Art. Kathy is not only a talented artist but also a first hand patient of Crohn’s disease with lots of knowledge in autoimmune disorder research. As someone who doesn’t know much about the medical field, or art, I appreciate the creative, approachable, clear approach she took to expand the public’s knowledge about this recent field of study.

Neuroscience + Art Week 7

At the beginning of Professor Vesna’s lecture, she stated that Neuroscience is an exploding field that artists have always been fascinated with. This comes as no surprise to me because after listening to the lectures and reading through the resources for this week, I am completely fascinated with this topic. I have previously thought about this concept of the mind and the mind-body separation, but even after studying this week’s material, I find myself just as amazed and puzzled as before this week. I think that the power of the mind is so vast and intricate that no amount of research of experiments could truly grasp its complexity. In my opinion, this state of mystery that the mind, body, and consciousness create is the most interesting and creative opportunity for artists.

What I found most interesting from this weeks material was the lecture video on dreams. I have always been fascinated by dreams and where dreams come from and what they mean. Professor mentioned in her lecture that 95% of what we dream is forgotten, which is something that is very puzzling to me. From the Proust reading, the quote, “A memory is only as real as the last time you remembered it,” really stuck out to me. I cannot wrap my head around how crazy the concepts of dreams are and how you remember some but forget most. As I was researching dreams more I came across a drawing by Salvador Dali. I found the picture to be a funny representation of how bizarre dreams truly are.

I also liked Professors lecture video on drugs and the power they have to completely transform your mind and consciousness. I found the topic of LSD to be interesting because of the way individuals who take the drug describe their “trip.” The way that the chemicals in the drug completely alter ones mind is dangerous, but astonishing because perception is transformed and what we see from artist painting and pictures becomes the individual’s reality.

Works Cited

"The Wonderful Mysteries of Dreams - Community of Lights." Community of Lights. Community of Lights, n.d. Web. 14 May 2015. 

"Truth About LSD." Foundation for a Drug-Free World. Foundation for a Drug-Free World, n.d. Web. 14 May 2015.

Max, D.T. "Swann’s Hypothesis." The New York Times. The New York Times, 03 Nov. 2007. Web. 14 May 2015.

James, Matthew. "Conscious of the Unconscious." Psychology Today. Psychology Today, n.d. Web. 14 May 2015.

Linden, Sanderq. "The Science Behind Dreaming." Scientific American Global RSS. Scientific American, n.d. Web. 14 May 2015.