Humans are curious creatures; we love what we don’t
understand. This week’s topic, Space +
Art, touches on our inherent need to learn. Since the first people roamed our
planet, the night sky has always played a role in society. Whether used in
determining the seasons or merely trying to find meaning in the world they
lived in, astronomy has always been linked with humanity (Cowen).
Films, books,
and television shows have a deep-rooted relationship with space as well. Christopher
Nolan’s new Academy Award winning movie, Interstellar,
draws viewers in with the lure of wormholes and blackholes, two topics the
general public does not know too much about (“Interstellar Awards”). Although
the plot is fictional, Interstellar
prides itself on scientific accuracy. With the help of Kip Thorne, a famous
astrophysicist and theorist, the crew of Interstellar
not only worked tirelessly to create the most accurate simulations possible for
the film, but also actually discovered new information about black holes
(Rogers). In aiming to produce art with science, they progressed in both
realms.
With curiosity comes the need to make sense of our world. Humans love
patterns and these patterns can often be found in math. The Powers of Ten Blog
makes massive numbers easier to comprehend by incorporating them into
interesting topics such as Valentine’s Day and the Challenger Deep (Marlow).
For example, in the “Challenger Deep” article, the author says “Challenger
Deep is approximately 11,030 meters (36,200 feet) [or 10^4 feet] deep. It is
named after the HMS Challenger, whose
crew first sounded the depths of the trench in 1875 [10^2 years ago]” Without
taking away from the content, the author slips in powers of ten to get the
reader more familiar with exponentials.
Appealing to mankind’s curious nature
can be a useful tool to fuse art and science, and historically, space seems to do the trick.
REFERENCES
"About | ARCTIC PERSPECTIVE INITIATIVE." About | ARCTIC PERSPECTIVE INITIATIVE. Arctic Perspective Initiative, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
"Awards." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
Cowen, Ron. "When the Sky Explained Everything - Issue 11: Light - Nautilus." Nautilus. Nautilus, 27 Mar. 2014. Web. 01 June 2015.
Eames Office LLC. Filmstrip Image. Digital image. Fast Co Design. Fast Co Design, 8 Oct. 2010. Web. 31 May 2015.
Holmes, Brian. "CODED UTOPIA." Continental Drift. Continental Drift, 27 Mar. 2007. Web. 01 June 2015.
"Interstellar." IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
Levrier, Guy. "Leonardo Space Art Project Visioneers." Leonardo Space Art Project Visioneers. Leonardo, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
Marlow. "An Eames Office Website." Powers of Ten Blog. Wordpress, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
Rogers, Adam. "WRINKLES IN SPACETIME: The Warped Astrophysics of Interstellar." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, n.d. Web. 01 June 2015.
The 88 Star Constellations. Digital image. The 88 Star Constellations. Go Astronomy, n.d. Web. 31 May 2015.
Zeitz, Richard. Black hole scene. Digital image. Frontline Desk. Frontline Desk, 14 Feb. 2015. Web. 31 May 2015.
Hi Madison,
ReplyDeleteI really liked your discussion of how we, as humans, love what we don't understand and this is what often motivates us to use different techniques to satisfy our curiosities. The movie "Interstellar" for instance is a great example of how art and science can portray the uncertainties of black holes. Your discussion of math was also very interesting, as I hadn't thought of how important patterns are in our understanding of space. Overall, I was really fascinated by how much of an impact and influence space has had in many artists' works. As we continue to learn more about our universe, I'm sure art and science will have to play an even more intertwined role in accurately representing our findings.