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Showing posts from April, 2022

Week 4: Medicine + Technology + Art

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Art and medicine are more closely related than one may think. Often times, people may overlook the impact that our understanding of medicine through technology has on art, but truthfully, our perception of art would not be the same without it. Without knowledge of medicine and the assistance of technology, we would lack an understanding of human anatomy, and consequently artists would have a difficult time producing accurate representations of the human body. Thus, art and medicine are intertwined and at times require the simultaneous involvement of both subjects.  Dissected Legs Walking in a Landscape from Giulio Casseri Additionally, as Victoria Vesna mentioned, another prime example of the intersection of art, medicine, and technology is plastic surgery. Artist Orlan, for instance, emphasized this relation through her performances which involved live plastic surgery as well as explanations of beauty and peoples' perception of it. Plastic surgery requires mastery of medical knowl

Event 1

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Today, I attended the Evo Devo art event hosted by Anna Lindemann. Evo Devo art is essentially art that explores biological and evolutionary processes. It seeks to examine the human emotion and subjectivity behind scientific research and uncover narratives through rigorous biological research. Especially for Anna, she personally utilizes creative animations within her performances to express her ideas, and she explained that she uses Evo Devo art as a medium of expression for the following three reasons. The first being that she has a desire to share amazing biological stories in an entertaining way to large audiences. The second being that it pushes her to harness her biological creativity, meaning that it may expand on her own creative possibilities. The third being that she believes it is a powerful means to provide human connection to other forms of art. Anna Lindemann explaining her personal meaning of Evo Devo Art What I found to be the most profound was how Anna's work stron

Week 3: Robotics + Art

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There is no doubt that the advent of machines and industrialization have resulted in necessary advancements in society. For example, the printing press established by Johannes Gutenberg unlocked the potential to print texts on mass scales and Ford's Assembly line allowed automobiles to become more affordable to the average consumer. The fact is that machines allowed many industries to operate more efficiently and effectively by replacing aspects of human labor with machine labor. However, the downside to mechanization is the risk for many workers to potentially lose their job when they can easily be replaced by machines. Thus, as the world becomes more involved with machines, the concern of unemployment arises. Ford's assembly line Machines have also become involved in the way art can be produced or reproduced. Walter Benjamin, author of  “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction,” believes that the involvement of machinery in art is problematic because its reprodu

Week 2: Math + Art

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Often times, people may overlook the relationship between math and art. However, as explained by Victoria Vesna, math is closely intertwined with art through the concepts of linear perspective, symmetry, and the golden ratio, to name a few. Brunelleschi, for instance was the first person to formulate linear perspective through the concept of the vanishing point and mathematical concepts. Al Haytham was another influential figure who studied optics which not only changed our understanding of how light and vision is understood but also played an important role in the progression of the fields of math, science, and art. Similarly, Piero Francesca focused on the concept of vision that involved the ideas of proportion and perspective in art, and he later developed vital geometric theorems that connect both math and art closely. Brunelleschi and linear perspective Perhaps the most impactful figure and artwork for me was Leonardo Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man because it cohesively embodies the

Week 1: Two Cultures

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Learning about the "two cultures" in this week's lectures and readings has pushed me to reflect on my major as whole. As a second year student studying business economics, I realized that as CP Snow discussed, the separation of sciences and the arts is evident to the point that we often overlook the necessity of applying both cultures in the real world. Despite that my major does not involve the arts, I have noticed that many of my lectures take place on the north side of campus, particularly in the Broad Art Center. I feel that this is especially profound relative to the idea of the separation of two cultures because it symbolizes an effort to encourage students to take the time to appreciate all parts of the campus as they make their frequent commutes to class. Personally for me, I have developed a greater appreciation for art at UCLA as I continue to walk past various sculptures and differing styles of architecture on the north side of campus. Broad Art Center at UCLA