Week 8: Nanotechnology + Art

 Nanotechnology was a very unfamiliar field for me prior to this week, and learning through the lectures by Professor Gimzewski was incredibly insightful. I was paricularly fascinated in how this week's topic can take on many different hats as nanotechnology and societal perception interact, almost combining fantasy with scientific understanding. What stuck out to me was the development of the electron microscope, which allowed scientists to see and "feel" into a new world (Gimzewski pt2 8:01 - 8:56). '

Scanning Tunneling Microscope (source: https://webhome.phy.duke.edu/~hsg/264L/images/stm.jpg) 

I was also fascinated in how nanoparticles could be studied in ancient materials, a true combination of not only art and science, but also history as well (Gimzewski pt3, 1:25 - 2:52). Further emphasizing this motif of nanotechnology and art is how color can be reduced to nanosize which completely changes the way it can be perceived through quantum dots (Gimzewski pt4, 2:03- 2:39). 

Representing Quantum Dots (source: https://images.theconversation.com/files/552184/original/file-20231004-19-i1snbm.jpg?ixlib=rb-4.1.0&rect=143%2C24%2C3655%2C2727&q=45&auto=format&w=926&fit=clip) 

These themes continue into the sub-field of nanophotonics, which was fascinating to hear after learning about quantum dots. The Blue Morpho butterfly's beautiful iridescent wings are created through different levels of reflected light (Gimzewski pt5), tying more into how an understanding of nanotechnology can help create new artwork and new understandings of art.

Blue Morpho Butterflies, Each with Different Patterns (source: https://www.sciencefriday.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Morpho-composite%E2%80%93Nipam-Patel.jpeg) 

Outside of nature and artistic representations and even history, it's eye-opening to see how a larger understanding of nanotechnology can change perspectives and revolutionize every single industry. From edible coatings to topical medications and cancer treatments (Gimzewsky pt6 pt4), nanotechnology is present in every aspect of our lives. 

Works Cited 

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt2” YouTube, YouTube, 21 May 2012,

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEp6t0v-v9c.

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt3” YouTube, YouTube, 21 May 2012,

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0HCNiU_108.

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt4” YouTube, YouTube, 21 May 2012,

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHCuZetAIhk.

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt5” YouTube, YouTube, 21 May 2012,

           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OWc8nmHJmY.

Gimzewski, James. “Nanotech Jim pt6” YouTube, YouTube, 21 May 2012,

           https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7&v=oKlViSKkPd0

Event 2: Pigeon Art Studio

This event was an exhibit centered around art that was created by pigeons using digital tools. This really reinstated the ideas of Nature and art for me, reminding me that things in nature are really not random, but they are intentional. The artists deducted that the pecking of the pigeons, while varying across the different animal artists, were very intentional and had common themes across their different art forms. This reminded me of hyperbolic geometry represented in coral reefs, that all seem to have an intention. The mission of the exhibit really sat with me as a way to understand animal intelligence (Pigeon Art) . 

I was particularly fascinated by the way the art was collected for the stained glass collection, and was really shocked to see how different the patterns were among different pigeons. Between the two collections as well, it was also clear that each pigeon had its own persona in art and that the researchers were able to deduce different patterns from their creations. 

For example, these two images from different pigeons show two different art forms that have a clearly different method of getting around: the top prefers to take closer steps and pecks while the other makes use of its wings and beak at the same time to create large sweeping motions. We can see these different patterns as ways to understand the unique consciousness of animals, giving us more context as to how we can define consciousness with emerging technologies (Vesna). This was a really great exhibit and I enjoyed attending, and I will be keeping a lookout for more pigeon events in the future! 

Blaisdell, Aaron. "Pigeon Art Studio." UCLA Art | Sci Center + Lab, 24 Apr. 2024, https://artsci.ucla.edu/node/1710. Accessed 24 May 2024.

"Mission." Pigeon Art, https://pigeonart.xyz/Mission/. Accessed 24 May 2024.

“About the Project .” Crochet Coral Reef, 2024, crochetcoralreef.org/about/theproject/. 

Vesna, Victoria. “Lecture I.” YouTube, uploaded by UC Online, 26 March 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF0Qt7L2-kM&t=56s 

Photogragphs taken by Kaylee Tran, the original Author of this blog.

Week 7: Neuroscience + Art

 Consciousness can be described as “the state or condition of being conscious” (Vesna, Lecture 1 1:34 - 2:07). This definition however is fluid and provokes even more questions on what consciousness can entail for other items such as developing technology. Reflecting on this definition from the perspective of art and science it was especially interesting to see where the origins of neuroscience and the study of the brain began. It’s also interesting to see how we have advanced that and added new definitions to what we see as conscious or “thinking” with new technology. Like Anker and Frazzetto, I observed that as a society we are fascinated with neuroscience despite its complexities. Their perspective that the brain is a function of “personhood” and has a feature of “being” rather than “having” really sets a precedent for the fascination with this field (Anker, Frazzetto). 

Image of Hypothetical Robot Having Consciousness 

I was also especially interested in Freud and Jung’s conflicting belief and was surprised to see their main conflict was not directly related to their studies but related to religion. Freud seeing religion as an escape while Jung saw it as an expression of individuality and mortality brought a new understanding to what thinking was prevalent at this time. Jung’s view on religion does seem to tie into his perspective on the unconscious mind as an innate manifestation of different archetypes, further emphasizing the motif of natural individuality.  (Vesna, Lecture II 2:26 -3:19)

It was also shocking, yet not surprising to hear about Freud’s cocaine addiction and how it could have influenced his work, and completely changed the course of his validity and career.  (Vesna, Lecture III, 0:29 - 3:34). It’s generally interesting to see how the discovery and testing of these drugs were seen as positive effects because of their psychological affect, when in modern times it is known that narcotics do more damage than they do good. 

Flyer for Comedic Play about Freud and his Cocaine Addiction

Finally, I was fascinated to hear about how artists tap into the scientific concepts behind visual perception to create their art like with optical illusions and eye tracking. Learning about how the eye processes visuals changed my perspective on how to view art and how artists are expecting others to view their art. 

Daniel Jay's "Gunpowder Alchemy"

Works Cited 

Frazzetto, Giovanni, and Anker, Suzanne. "Neuroculture." Nature Reviews Neuroscience, vol. 10, no. 11, 2009, pp. 815-821. PDF. Accessed 16 May 2024.

Jay, Daniel. “Neuroscience + Art with Daniel Jay.”  Interview accessible by private login on Bruinlearn. 

Vesna, Victoria. “Lecture I.” YouTube, uploaded by UC Online, 26 March 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF0Qt7L2-kM&t=56s 

Vesna, Victoria. “Lecture II.” YouTube, uploaded by UC Online, 26 March 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF0Qt7L2-kM&t=56s 

Vesna, Victoria. “Lecture III.” YouTube, uploaded by UC Online, 26 March 2012, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF0Qt7L2-kM&t=56s 

Images Cited 

Arvan, Marcus. "Can Digital Computers Ever Achieve Consciousness?" John Templeton Foundation, 6 Feb. 2023, https://www.templeton.org/news/can-digital-computers-ever-achieve-consciousness. Accessed 16 May 2024.

Freud on Cocaine. Whitefire Theatre, 2024, https://freudoncocaine.com/. Accessed 16 May 2024.

Swafford, Joanna Elizabeth. "Daniel Jay’s 'Gunpowder Archemy' at Tech Art Fair." Digital Humanities at Tufts, 16 Feb. 2018, https://sites.tufts.edu/digitalhumanities/2018/02/16/daniel-jays-gunpowder-archemy-at-tech-art-fair/. Accessed 16 May 2024.

Event 1: "Invisible Ingredients: Unveiling the Science of Processed Foods"

 This exhibit featured multiple advertisement artworks for certain chemicals/preservatives used in processed foods to create their unique textures, viscocities, and appearances. The work was catching and whimsical, inviting like advertisements were but the content couldn't help but leave viewers with a sense of uneasiness about their food. I was astonished by how this flurry of complicated and scientific terms were just small components in making sure that food for consumers is as appealing as possible. The exhibit makes note that "the health impacts of highly processed foods are increasingly ringing alarm bells in medicine and epidemiology, and the environmental footprint of these industrialized systems of production becomes ever more evident" (UCLA Art | Sci Center). 

I found this piece with nature's inconsistencies and eggs interesting particularly pertaining to consumerism in modern society. I thought back to CP Snow's work about the separation of the Two Cultures brought to attention the socioeconomic disparities caused by the Industrial Revolution (Vesna Part 1) and how some similar concepts could be thought of now with preservatives in food, where consumers will only accept a certain standard for what they are paying for. This allowed proccessed foods to grow in popularity for those across society and adds a layer of inaccessibility to food because of normalized apperance standards. It brings me to further insight that food is considered an art in many ways through its appearance and cultural significances across the world, and this exhibit highlights the way that science has melded with this in a negative way and joined the intersectional triangle between art, science, and technology (Vesna , Toward and Third Culture). 

These two pieces stuck out to me for their cartoon-like appearances and how they are seemingly positive until you realize their content. The exhibit description notes that these pieces were once satirical: meant to be terrifying for the average consumer, and only for the eyes of lab workers. However, in modern days, many don't blink an eye to processed groceries and have grown accustomed to them, which makes these ads even more terrifying as they reveal aspects of everyday food that were artificially manufactured even when we can't see or taste them. This exhibit really prompted me to think about what is actually going into my body and if society will ever reach a point as to be able to allow us to detect these invisible substances in what we consume. 

UCLA Art | Sci Center. "Exhibition opening and LASER talk – 'Hot Cling, Shear Magic, and the Mouthfeel of Capitalism: Images From the History of Ultra Processed Foods'." Sustainability at UCLA, 10 Apr. 2024, www.sustain.ucla.edu/event/exhibition-opening-and-laser-talk-hot-cling-shear-magic-and-the-mouthfeel-of-capitalism-images-from-the-history-of-ultra-processed-foods/.

Vesna, Victoria. “Toward a Third Culture: Being in Between.” Leonardo, vol. 34, no. 2, 2001, pp. 121–25. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1577014. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

Vesna, Victoria. “TwoCultures part1.” YouTube, YouTube, 30 Mar. 2012, https://youtu.be/VNI7dF3DIAM

Photographs are all taken by Kaylee Tran, original author of this blog.

Week 4: Medicine + Technology + Art

After looking into all of these invigorating projects, my eyes were truly opened to a new perspective on the intersection of medicine and art. I was surprised to learn that the Renaissance was one of the original origins of when art and science really started to come together (Vesna Part 1 3:02-3:57). I was particularly interested in how dissection was one of the original intersections of art and science was dissection (Vesna Part 1 0:05-0:29), which I originally thought was just for scientific purposes and exploration but never seen as a little bit of both. On a similar note, I also thought MRI images were purely for explorative and medical purposes, while Casini describes them as “devices capable of enacting a process of identity-construction and mirror-ing” (99). This opened my eyes to see how medical imagery is considered an art form and can be looked at this way instead of just for medicine. 

 I was familiar with the concept of artists using the human body as inspiration. Even then, it was surprising to see that some artists take inspiration from even more elemental building blocks like the cell, where "The geodesic structure found within the cytoskeleton is a classic example of a pattern that is found everywhere in nature, at many different size scales" (Ingber 49). This is reminscient of the math + art unit, where the natural items presented from humans are so clearly intentional and intricite and such an inspiration for art forms. I also found it powerful that art and medicine have manifested from dissections to performative plastic surgery for survivors and prosthetics for former soldiers (Vesna Part 2 4:01-4:53). This reminded me of an artist who makes prothetics not only practical but creative and aesthetic, bringing a new artistic expression to those who wear a prosthetic. 

   

 The notion of prosthetics also reminded me of DNA alteration research and the hyper-dystopian movie GATTACA where people are sorted based on their genetic advantages, and those who wish to live a high soceity life have to go to extreme measures to cover up their genetic footprint.

 

 These notions all connected to one of the final concepts where medicine technolgy and art were fully intertwined in intricate thought out pieces where the artist used their body as a medium. This was especially exemplified in Time Capsule and other following artists took the intersection of these three fields to new heights and created an entirely new genre of art.  

Eduardo Kac, "Time Capsule", 1997. 

Works Cited 

 Casini, Silvia. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI Configurations between Science and the Arts." 

Configurations, vol. 19, no. 1, 2011. Johns Hopkins University Press and the Society for Literature and Science. 

 Videos and Images 

 “GATTACA [1997] - Official Trailer (HD) | Now on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and Digital.” Youtube, uploaded by Sony Pictures Entertainment, 24 October 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIIZ2P-fiyI 

 Kac, Eduardo. "Time Capsule." 1997, www.ekac.org/timcap.html. Accessed 26 April 2017. 

 “The Woman Sculpting Aesthetic Prosthetics.” YouTube, uploaded by 60 Second Docs, 10 March 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtGbtNve72w

Week 3: Robotics + Art

One of the earliest forms of robotics and art can be traced back to the printing press, a catalyst to machinery growing in society (Vesna Part 1 0:31-2:37). This manual "machine"  grew a trend of rapid-production, especially with the Ford cars beginning the assembly line (Vesna Part 2 0:58-1:36). I was particularly interested in the personification of machinery and robots throughout this week's topic. What struck me as interesting was the disapproval about these new developments, specifically Benjamin Walter emphasizing that "Mechanical reproduction of art changes the reaction of the masses towards art" (pg. 4 XII). He criticizes machinery for taking away the uniqueness and individuality from art and people, coinciding with the perspective that the assembly line was seen as a way to treat humans as machines, and taken with some resistance from society (Vesna Part 2 1:20-1:55). 

Ford Assembly Line Image 

However, in modern times, we have been able to view robotics in society as more artistic and more personable. Japan's particular love for humanoid robots was developed through Japanese media, where people were able to personify a humanoid robot in a more positive manner that allowed society to accept this new technology (Kasuahara 1:43-5:35). This overtook the initial scare that stemmed from the industrial revolution that robots will take over human life, tracing back to the assembly lines and machinery recreated items (Kasuahara 11:23-12:20). It's interesting that this fear of robots is still somewhat present in the development of AI, with the Turing Machine the foundation of really testing what constitutes an artificial intelligence (Vesna Part 3 4:33-6:54). It seems that society has been able to personify this new age of robotics and art as something both fascinating and terrifying: when it pushes the confines of innovation we respond with astonishment, but when it threatens our comfortability we respond with fear. 

Couple with a Lovot, a Japanese Robot that is Declared to be the "First Robot with a Heart". 

Finally, I wanted to explore how society currently still personifies robots, showing the way that we tend to attach it to human qualities to make it more digestible. In Sun Yuan & Peng Yu's robotic artwork "Can't Help Myself", one can't help but feel pity and sadness for the robot, evoking emotion despite its faceless appearance. This emphasizes the notion that as a society who has come to accept machinery, it can still evoke the same emotions and personification that is found in art. 

 Video: Artpiece of "Cant Help Myself" from the Guggenheim Museum. 

Works Cited 

Benjamin, Walter. "The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction." Accesible by Course on Bruinlearn, 1936.

Vesna, Victoria. “Industrialization, Robotics, Kinetic/ robotic art - Part 1” Youtube, 26 Mar. 2012, https://youtu.be/dJcPtv7tnKY?si=hcH_PI2anrbgelKN 

Vesna, Victoria. “Robotics - Part 2” Youtube, 26 Mar. 2012, https://youtu.be/dJcPtv7tnKY?si=hcH_PI2anrbgelKN 

Vesna, Victoria. “Robotics - Part 3” Youtube, 26 Mar. 2012, https://youtu.be/dJcPtv7tnKY?si=hcH_PI2anrbgelKN 

Kasuhara, Machiko. "Professor Machiko Kusahara on Japanese robotics" Bruinlearn, Accessible by login link. 

Images cited 

Fleuri, Johann. "Japan’s Emotionally Enhanced Robots — and the People Who Love Them." The Japan Times, 13 Nov. 2022, www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2022/11/13/general/robot-pepper-lovot-companions/.

Eschner, Kat. "In 1913, Henry Ford Introduced the Assembly Line: His Workers Hated It." Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Dec. 2016, www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/one-hundred-and-three-years-ago-today-henry-ford-introduced-assembly-line-his-workers-hated-it-180961267/.

Guggenheim Museum. “Time-Lapse of Sun Yuan & Peng Yu’s ‘Can’t Help Myself.” YouTube, 3 Dec. 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRjrI42WsH4 

Week 2: Math + Art

 This week pertaining to Math and Art, one of the first sources given to us discussed the fascination with the "fourth dimension" and how it influenced art styles in the 20th century. The artistic and scholarly nature of this article really emphasized the way that Science and Art are intertwined, and I was especially surprised to learn that a lot of the significant styles of this time were inspired by Einstein's Theory of Relativity--which I thought was generally just admired by scientists! (Henderson 205). Art focusing on mathematical properties can represent perspective and vision, as focused on by Piero de la Francesca (Vesna 18:14-19:10). On the other hand, math in art can manifest itself in the imagination, as shown to me by Abbott's Flatland. Despite the simple imagery of triangle soldiers or line women, these simple descriptions and illustrations create a world that is still rich to the imagination. 

Visualization from Flatland Describing a Dream with a Line of Different People 

I also had previously thought that most art concerning nature was inspired by nature's randomness and imperfections, however I was really intrigued to see that oftentimes it can also be a reflection of the world's natural tendencies towards geometry. As shown in the Crochet Coral Reefs (pictured below), art reflecting nature can be really calculated: in this case, hyperbolic geometry for the reefs of coral. 

Pod Worlds at the Museum of Arts and Design, Photographed by Jenna Bascom for MAD. 

On the same tangent as geometry, ART+COM's piece "Kinetic Rain" (pictured below) opened my eyes to how precise calculation can completely change how an art piece can be viewed. I have had the chance to see this in real life, and I remember being so astonished by the way that these calculations and calculated movements can create a piece's impact. 

"Kinetic Rain" by ART+COM Studios

With the way that math and art are so intertwined and potentially so far apart, it seems that their relationship manifests itself into one implying the other and vice versa. As technology grows, it seems that Math and Art can begin to share a space instead of dividing it. Bringing in the perspective of how art and culture can connect to current technology, Nicholas Gessler states “ I think we have to understand culture and cognition not just in terms of how humans interact and pass information from one to another, but in terms of physical things as well. “(Wertheim) . This viewpoint is something I think that all students should share, whether they are involved in arts, sciences, or both. 

Works Cited (Images are also from these sources) 

Abbott, Edwin Abbott. Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions. Second, revised edition, 1884. Ibiblio,     https://www.ibiblio.org/eldritch/eaa/FL.HTM. 

“About the Project .” Crochet Coral Reef, 2024, crochetcoralreef.org/about/theproject/. 

Henderson, Linda Dalrymple. "The Fourth Dimension and Non-Euclidean Geometry in Modern Art: Conclusion."     Leonardo, vol. 17, no. 3, 1984, pp. 205-210. JSTOR, http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0024-    094X%281984%2917%3A3%3C205%3ATFDANG%3E2.0.CO%3B2-1.

“Kinetic Rain, 2012.” ART+COM Studios | Kinetic Rain, https://artcom.de/en/?project=kinetic-rain. Accessed 10 Apr. 2024 

Vesna, Victoria. “Mathematics-PT1-ZeroPerspectiveGoldenMean.mov.” YouTube, Youtube, 9 April 2012, https://youtu.be/mMmq5B1LKDg  

Wertheim, Margaret. "Things That Think: An Interview With Computer Collector Nicholas Gessler." The Institute for Figuring, 2006, https://www.theiff.org/publications/cab21-gessler.html.