Event 4: Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous (LASER)

The overarching theme of this event was the exploration of nature and the natural environment.This was my second time attending a LASER event, so I was familiar with the layout; the four featured speakers were Maru García, Ariel Levi Simons, Kelly Nipper, and John Hood spoke about various projects.

Maru Garcia's project titled Encounter

The first speaker was Maru García; Maru García examines nature through a cultural and personable lens in her artwork. With a background in science, having studied chemistry and biotechnology, she brings with her a scientific lens to her work. While one of her passions was science, she was also passionate about art and creativity, leading her to study design media arts, allowing for integration of these two divergent fields (Snow). García sheds light on the connection between humans and nature, and their coexistence in her artwork. Her art can be categorized as bioart, as she uses living organisms, such as bacteria as a form of paint to make Petri dish artwork. One of her projects is called Encounter. Encounter is a biomorphic piece made of plastic and is filled with organic material; it represents an intersection of the natural world with man-made products. This exploration of opposing materials allowed for the realization that humans and nature are intertwined, and it is imperative that the balance between both is maintained.

Test a Pattern, Take a Picture:
Connection between Human & Space 

Kelly Nipper spoke about using the movement of body as a material, with the space and lines being an integral part of the artwork. With a background in media arts and photography, she uses her photography as a medium to capture dancers in order to communicate ideas about lines and movement. Her projects center around the earth-climate change, as she considers global warming and climate change, and the shift in poles. One of her projects called Test a Pattern Take a Picture aims to convey the innate connection between nature and humans. There is an energy that moves from the ground, through the person, and from his fingertips to space. As Annick Bureaud states, space art "makes me dream and move me deeply" (Leonardo Space Art Project). This art is inspirational to me; for me it represents how far away we are from understanding space, yet we continue to try and get closer to understanding the mysteries of the universe.

Picture of me and Professor John Hood

Ariel Levi Simons is an ecologist that works with light pollution, and researches how artificial light is affecting our ecosystem. Many animals including sea turtles, rely on light cues such as the moon to navigate their surroundings. Simons takes ground base measurements using a hemisphere camera, receiving color-temperature maps and intensity data for different spectrums of light that shine. His plan is to build a model and integrate this data in order to characterize and understand the effects of light on various organisms and environments.

John Hood is a professor of modern art and art design that described the David Bermant collection. Bermant's collection was unique in the sense that if focused on non-traditional, eclectic work. Bermant was especially interested in how artists utilized technology. Some artists that are a part of the collection include  Wilfred, the father of media arts & projection arts), Clyde Lynde, and Victoria Vesna, my professor. Dr. Vesna's piece Nanomandala, uses concepts of nanotechnology, starting with the nanoscale structure of sand to the whole mandala (Art in the Age of Nanotechnology). Bermant's collection represents a shift from traditional artwork to artwork categorized by innovative and collaboration between different fields.


Sources:
"Art in the Age of Nanotechnology." John Curtin Gallery, Art.Base, 2010.https://art.base.co/event/2104-art-in-the-age-of-nanotechnology. Accessed 1 June 2018. 
Malina, Roger, et al. "Leonardo Space Art Project." MIT Press, 1996,  https://spaceart.org/leonardo/vision.html. Accessed 31 May 2018. 
"May 10: Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous (LASER)." YouTube, uploaded by CNSI at UCLA, 10 May 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QgR8kj2-lo
Snow, C.P. The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution. New York, Cambridge University Press, 1961.