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When reviewing this week’s materials, it was fascinating to learn about nanotechnology as it is a subject that was very unfamiliar to me, yet is on the rise. As mentioned in the reading, the nanoscale is so abstract in relation to human experience and nanotechnology is very much in its beginning stages of development, which is why it is attracting not only scientists, but artists and humanists alike. Image of the Lycurgus Cup from the British Museum  We have long been exposed to nanoparticles as they are found in ancient materials, such as the Lycurgus Cup, which appears green in the daylight, but when illuminated from inside it is red due to the coloration from nanosized gold particles. Nanoparticles are also found in Medieval stained glass, which was created using gold nanoparticles to color stained glass red, while silver nanoparticles gave it a deep yellow color. Artisans at the time though did not even realize the role nanotechnology properties played. Stained gl...

The brain is what allows us to think, create, move and just be. Its uniqueness and complexity has captured the interest of intellectuals across various disciplines, including both science and art. As neuroscience advances and we gain further knowledge about brain functionality, artists are able to further explore the interaction of art and the mind. Back in the 19th century, Ramon y Cajal produced detailed hand drawings of brain cells, paving the way for future neuroscientists and showing how art and science can work together to study the brain’s structure. Since his work on neuronal theory and as neuroscience has advanced, artists continue to use neuroscience as inspiration for their work. Ramon y Cajal's drawings of the inner brain from the NY Times For example, as mentioned in the Neuroscience reading, Jonathon Keats used MRI images of his own brain’s activity to create art and highlight the association of the brain with one’s identity. Artist Suzanne Anker also expl...

The second event I attended was E. Joteva’s solo exhibition titled “Mnemoawari”. As I entered the exhibition, on top of the sounds of the other students in attendance was the magnified sound of water droplets over the speaker. The first piece of work I saw was a projection on the wall of a bright blue circle with lines cast outward, similar to a drawing of a sun. The edges of some of the lines had sparks of red or green. Joteva explained to me how what I was looking at was a dream-wave portrait (see image below). The image was a depiction of an individual’s gamma and theta brainwaves she captured when she asked the individual to recall their memories of their future dreams. The image was separate from the water droplets in the background, yet tied in with Joteva’s interest in human memory and direction of the past, present and future. Dream-Wave Portrait As I turned the corner, I discovered the correlation with the background sound to be three circular spheres, each ha...

With scientific knowledge of biotech expanding, more people, including artists and non-artists, are transitioning from passive subjects to active participants. It is this public participation that allows new viewpoints to be brought into the scientific world, and questions the limits of human creativity. Kathy High’s Embracing Animal installation used transgenic rats, which had been injected with human DNA, and showcased the relationship between humans and animals. High treated her rats as her “sisters”, rather than general scientific specimens. Her treatment is unique as rats are usually not attributed with such importance by scientists in the biotech community. Rat from Kathy High's Embracing Animal Installation (kathyhigh.com) Kelty thus may consider Kathy a Victorian Gentleman not just due to her view as an “aesthete intellectual”, but because of how her artwork sheds light on a renewed focus on transgenic rats as animals that help us humans identify health issu...