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| Exploring Mars |
Humans as a species have always been curious about the world around them. With that, we have always had a natural fascination with one of the biggest physical part of our lives: the sky. Even before man had the technology to actually study the objects of space, the aspects seen by the naked eye have provided stories and culture to those who view it. In present day, we have continuously evolving technology that has brought us closer to understanding what lies above (and around) us.
With the examples provided in the lecture, it was a perfect example of how science does not just influence art, but art can provide inspiration for many scientific advances. Especially with the fascination of space, many writers and artists have fantasized about the unlimited possibilities we can accomplish. With science, these fantasies have quickly become a reality.
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| Saturn as seen from Titan, 1952 |
This week, my favorite artist was Chesley Bonestell who was one of the first artists to depict space, and helped popularize manned space travel. His images provoke excitement and wonder about space travel, and helped get such projects to the public eye. Richard Clar is an example of someone who has actively tried to combine the two cultures. He "founded Art Technologies in 1987 as a liaison between the worlds of art and technology" (Art Technologies). I also found it interesting that even scientists are interesting in introducing art into their practice, like in the instance of
Cosmic Dancer, where they wanted to document the effects of zero gravity on sculpture, and wanted to evaluate the effect of art onto the program.
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Cosmonaut Alexander Polischuk and the Cosmic Dancer
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Works Cited
“Cosmic Dancer - a Space Art Intervention by Arthur Woods.” Cosmic Dancer 2.0: Arthur Woods : Space Artist, www.cosmicdancer.com/introduction.php.
“Richard Clar.” Website of Richard Clar and Art Technologies, a Collaboration between Space Technology and the Arts, www.arttechnologies.com/site-2005/Gallery/gallerymain.html.
“Bonestell - Home.” Chesley Bonestell, www.bonestell.org/.
Dancing on the Ceiling: Art & Zero Gravity Curated by Kathleen Forde : EMPAC Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center : Troy, NY USA, zerogravity.empac.rpi.edu/.
Vesna , Victoria, dir. Space Part 1-5. 2012. Film. 30 Nov 2012.
My final event I attended for this course is Sarah Rosalena Brady's Coyotes in Two Directions. At the first glance of the gallery, I was admittedly confused as to what the piece was about. There were metal rods with animal features, with one moving and transforming in the center. However, a conversation with the artist lead me to have a great appreciation for both the piece, and the artist's use of technology.
She described her inspiration for the piece was to translate the great symbols of the desert that have been woven into many spoken history stories, in to today's world of technology. She was particularly interested of the trickster-like qualities of coyotes, the national symbol and endangered species of the bald eagle, and the defense mechanism of the rattlesnake. Utilizing a 3D printer, she scanned a to scale model of coyote feet and eagle claws, and a scaled model of a snake's rattle. The transforming piece of the eagle is to depict how these symbols have transformed over time.
By using technology and robotics, this artist has combined the two cultures to show a story of how the great symbols of the past have transformed over time. Her use of the motor mechanism in the piece, as well as using a 3D printer shows the paradigm shift toward the use of technology, especially when it comes to artistic pieces. Once again, it was amazing to personally experience how to blend both technology and art to produce a moving installation.
