Week 4- Medicine, Art, and Manipulation of the Human Body

An understanding of the human body is essential for creating artwork.  It is not surprising that fascination of the human body dates back to the beginning of recorded history, with the Egyptians’ mummification and the Greek’s human dissection.  Human beauty has been and always will be a large part of art, so the ability to depict the human body accurately is invaluable.

Fascination the human body dates back to Egyptian mummification.

http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/homework/egypt/images/anubis.jpg

Now that we understand the human body quite well, people have begun to manipulate their bodies to become artwork themselves.  Supermodels and body builders have to go through grueling diets and intense work out plans in order to maintain their pristine physique.  These diet and workout plans are based on medical research for creating a beautiful result.

http://www.examiner.com/article/victoria-s-secret-supermodel-shares-fitness-secrets-liquid-diet-daily-workouts

Victoria’s secret model, Adriana Lima, uses a liquid diet and daily work outs to maintain her figure.

http://15pictures.com/wp-content/gallery/15-pictures-adriana-lima/adriana-lima-1.jpg

While I believe that some minor manipulation of the human body for purposes of art is okay, I think it can be taken too far.  For example, plastic surgery can do wonders.  It can help repair a misshapen appearance due to injury and can help boost self-esteem in many cases.

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/plastic-surgery-boosts-happiness-unreasonable-expectations-article-1.1286078

However, the desire to manipulate one’s body can become an obsession.  Some psychologists believe that this obsession may even become a psychological addiction.

http://www.livescience.com/8034-heidi-montag-plastic-surgery-obsession-addiction.html

Nonetheless, some view continuous body manipulation as a means of artistic expression.  For example, Orlan underwent nine surgeries from 1990 to 1995, in order to imitate Botticelli’s Venus and Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.  Although, I personally view this as quite disturbing, some still view this as art.

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/jul/01/orlan-performance-artist-carnal-art

One of Orlan’s transformations. http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2009/jul/01/orlan-performance-artist-carnal-art

Although it is debatable whether these transformations are actually beautiful works of art, we must remember that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that freedom of expression is a natural right.

Works Cited

Barrow, Mandy. "Ancient Egypt Mummies and the Afterlife for Kids." Ancient Egypt Mummies and the Afterlife for Kids. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Jeffries, Stuart. "Orlan's Art of Sex and Surgery." The Guardian. N.p., 1 July 2009. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Rettner, Rachel. "Heidi Montag's Plastic Surgery: Obsession or Addiction?" LiveScience.com. N.p., 21 Jan. 2010. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Vesna, Victoria. "Medicine Part I." Lecture. Web. 27 Oct. 2013. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEgn-fZQ8po>.

"Victoria's Secret Supermodel Shares Fitness Secrets: Liquid Diet, Daily Workouts." Examiner.com. N.p., 7 Nov. 2011. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Week 3 - Industrialization's Affect on Art and Society

The debate as to whether industrialization has been beneficial or detrimental to art has valid arguments on both sides.

Walter Benjamin argues that mechanical reproduction, a major byproduct of industrialization, has depreciated the authenticity of art.  This is very serious since he believes “the authenticity of a thing is the essence of all that is transmissible from its beginning” (Benjamin).  Thus, mechanical reproduction of art, such as photography, destroys the very essence of the art work.

Benjamin even goes as far to argue that film has depreciated the experience of art to that of “absent-minded” distraction as opposed to that of contemplation (Benjamin).

On the other hand, industrialization has created new forms of art never before imagined.  As alluded to above, industrialization made the production of film possible.  (http://inventors.about.com/od/estartinventors/ss/George_Eastman.htm)

Kodak film factory worker. (http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/emissourian.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/0f/80fc8890-42b7-11e1-9cb2-0019bb2963f4/4f183f7303755.preview-300.jpg)

Film and the motion picture have brought contemplation and imagination to the masses.  For example, Star Trek not only empowered the futuristic imagination of space exploration, wireless communication, and even cyborgs, but it also raised questions of human ethics that would not have been available to the masses if it were not for the production of film.
http://www.imdb.com/list/g1v-idg7IsI/
http://www.edrobertson.com/ethics.htm

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20081121204425/memoryalpha/en/images/thumb/3/36/The_Ethics_of_Star_Trek_alternate.jpg/118px-The_Ethics_of_Star_Trek_alternate.jpg

After analyzing both sides of the argument, I believe that instead of looking at whether industrialization was beneficial or detrimental to art and society as a whole, we should acknowledge that the very nature of art is fluid.  New forms of art arise, while old forms of art wither away.  We must accept this as the flow of nature, for better or for worse.  Its affect on society is just another contributing factor to the evolution of man.

http://char.txa.cornell.edu/art/fineart/change/change.htm

Evolution of Portrait (http://char.txa.cornell.edu/art/portr.gif)

Works Cited

Benjamin, Walter. The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. London: Penguin, 2008. Print.

Week 2: Mathematics and Art

It is not surprising how important mathematics is to the studies of art and science.  One could say that mathematics is essential to the study of any discipline in one way or another.

http://media.boreme.com/post_media/2012/galileo-mathematics-alphabet-of-universe.jpg

What is truly interesting is how mathematics has influenced and improved art throughout the years, and even how art has motivated an improvement in mathematics.

A great example of math’s influence on art and vice versa is the formulation of perspective art.  Before the 14^th century, artists such as Giotto were able to mimic the effects of perspective, but they viewed perspective as a quality as opposed to a measurable phenomena.

http://www.webexhibits.org/sciartperspective/perspective1.html

Giotto’s “Jesus Before Caif” uses perspective to create depth of field.

Later, the mathematics of perspective was examined by those such as Brunellesci, in an attempt to understand nature and apply it to art.

http://www.math.utah.edu/~treiberg/Perspect/Perspect.htm

Through examining the progression of events, we notice that artists influenced mathematicians to develop a theory of perspective, which in turn improved art.  This mutual influence has driven improvements in mathematics and art for hundreds of years.

Another example of the mutual influence between math and art is origami.  Although Japanese origami has been a recreational activity since the 1600s (http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/between-the-folds/history.html ), the relationship between origami and math is still developing.  For example, Dr. Robert Lang regularly lectures on the mathematics of origami, and uses the mathematics to create superb origami of his own.

http://www.langorigami.com/science/math/math.php

Dr. Lang’s Aedes aegypti origami creation.

This idea of mutual influences ties into last week’s discussion of the third culture.  If mathematicians maintain an open dialogue with artists, the trend of mutual influence discussed above can continue to flourish.

http://www.bridgesmathart.org/

-Arthur Wolf

Works Cited

"The Geometry of Perspective Drawing on the Computer." Mathematics of Perspective Drawing. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

"History of Origami." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

"Perspective: The Role of Perspective in Shaping the Renaissance." Science and Art of Perspective. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2013.

Week 1 Blog: Two Cultures

I thought it was strange that UCLA would offer a class that tries to bridge the gap between two subjects that I believed to be polar opposites: art and science.  It had never occurred to me that the disciplines of art and science diverged from the same origin, since I had always believed that art and science had been distinct disciplines for thousands of years.  When I learned that the word “science” did not appear in the Oxford English Dictionary prior to 1860, my belief of the parallel emergence of art and science quickly disintegrated.

I then decided to do some personal research on the Third Culture, which intersects art and science into a single discipline, particularly into famous figures who demonstrated an appetite for both art and science.  Quickly, Leonardo da Vinci popped into mind.  It is hard to believe that the man who created the Mona Lisa is also known for his exploits in mathematics, anatomy, and even geology and paleontology.
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/vinci.html

It is amazing to note that in a single piece of work, the Mona Lisa, da Vinci highlighted his membership of the Third Culture by integrating artistic beauty with a manipulation of human perception.
http://sciencenetlinks.com/science-news/science-updates/mona-lisas-smile/

The Mona Lisa smile integrates art and scientific perception.  http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bf/Mona_Lisa-restored.jpg/396px-Mona_Lisa-restored.jpg

I had always viewed myself as a member of the scientific culture.  Throughout high school, I was known for taking every science class my school had to offer.  Even when I was forced to take an art class, I opted to take photography because I enjoyed the technology.

http://www.cheresources.com/content/articles/other-topics/chemistry-of-photography

A darkroom for developing photographs requires lots of technology.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dark_room.jpg

However, since attending UCLA, I have begun to embrace my place in the cultures of both art and science.  Although, the famous North vs. South Campus rivalry gives UCLA a bad name on the accord of separating the two cultures, I believe that UCLA serves as a counter example to C.P. Snow’s conjecture that university curriculum is the source of the separation.
http://dailybruin.com/2011/02/24/students_north_and_south_campus_tshirts_greeted_with_high_student_demand/

               

North and South campus t-shirts.

http://michaelmohlman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/southcampusfull.png

http://www.kotisdesign.com/aws/ibuys/products/7/9/1/8/79188-8-1-b.jpg

For example, the CS Department, of which I am a member, offers courses in computer graphics, animation, and video game design.  These disciplines allow computer scientists to demonstrate their creativity while expanding their technical knowledge.

Course Descriptions

http://www.registrar.ucla.edu/schedule/subdet.aspx?srs=187720200&term=13F&session=

http://www.registrar.ucla.edu/schedule/subdet.aspx?srs=187827200&term=13F&session=

http://www.registrar.ucla.edu/schedule/subdet.aspx?srs=187722200&term=13S&session=

Who knows?  Computer geeks could be the third culture that John Brockman and C.P. Snow had in mind.

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/279/5353/992.full

-Arthur Wolf

Citations:

Haslego, Chris. "Chemistry of Photography - Other Topics - Articles - Chemical Engineering - Frontpage - Cheresources.com." Cheresources.com. N.p., 8 Nov. 2010. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

Kelly, Kevin. "The Third Culture." The Third Culture. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

"Mona Lisa's Smile." Science NetLinks. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

Strutner, Suzy. "Student’s North and South Campus T-shirts Greeted with High Student Demand." Daily Bruin. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

Waggoner, Ben. "Leonardo Da Vinci." University of California Museum of Paleontology. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.