Week 2 Blog Assignment | Math + Art

Week 2 Blog Assignment | Math + Art

The Golden Ratio - An Expression of Geometry & Art

Insights --- 
Tying concepts into last week, I immediately noted that R. Buckminster Fuller's concept of de-geniusing children harkened back to the RSA video's study on education and creative thinking (Robinson). To recall, kindergarteners perceived multiple answers to a question, but through the education process began to see the world in binaries and categories. Buckminster's quote set the precedence for this week in once again deconstructing the binaries that we place on subjects like "Math" or "Art". 

Moreover, analyzing the intersection of Mathematics and Art/Science this week challenged me to understand the long-standing depth of influence that Mathematical concepts have had in the fields of Art/Science dating back to the ancient eras of Egyptian Pyramids or Greco-Roman Temples (Lecture, Vesna). Though Vesna explained how The Computer, novel to the past few decades, has helped bridge the gap between Art and Math in new ways, lecture also elaborated on how the two fields have been long intertwined for centuries in ways that have not always been as obvious, such as through the Golden Ratio of ancient times which represented both the geometry of a blueprint and the beauty of a temple.

Origami - A Precise, Calculated Art-Form

Spotlight Focus --- 
An art form that I chose to focus on for it's intersection of Art and Math was the similarly long-standing art of Origami (Origami, Lang). Lang elaborated on the "subset of mathematics" that manifests itself through the laws of Origami. The emphasis on the logical structure and precise measurements, commonly associated with the Math field, unpacks that Art is not solely defined by the stereotypical abstract and loose expression, but sometimes concrete and precise creativity as well.

Mathematics & Creative Expression --- 
In a similar vein to Origami expression as logical and structured rather than abstract, I've seen this theme of math-influenced art play out largely in the field of architecture: a study guided by both mathematical precision and geometry as it is guided by the aesthetic and creativity of art.

Pollock Painting - An Un-Calculated, Math-Free Art Form

Juxtaposition --- 
Ultimately, the juxtaposition between Math and Art|Sci is that they do come together and work together, albeit through forms that will follow the guidelines of precise, calculated math-concepts and aesthetic-heavy, expressive facets of art. Math helps us form Arts and Sciences that will be geometric and linear. Though it is hard to bridge Math into the unpredictable and haphazard splatter paint of a Pollock piece (above), Math consistently proves present in any art that is calculated. 

Citation

Abbott, Edwin Abbott. Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions. New York: n.p., 1963. Print.

"Golden Ratio." Golden Ratio. Math Is Fun, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.

Henderson, Linda D. "The Fourth Dimension and Non-Euclidean Geometry in Modern Art Linda Dalrymple Henderson." Leonardo 17.3 (1984): 205-10.JStor. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.

Lang, Robert J. Origami Cardinal. Digital image. Lang Origami. Robert J. Lang, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://www.langorigami.com/image.php?image=/art/birds/cardinal_3d.jpg&width=600&height=450&cropratio=600:450>.

Lang, Robert J. "Origami Mathematics." Origami Mathematics. Robert J. Lang, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.

Pollock, Jackson. Convergence. Digital image. Jackson Pollock: Biography, Paintings, and Quotes. Jackson-pollock.org, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <http://www.jackson-pollock.org/images/paintings/convergence.jpg>.

RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms. Prod. Abi Stephenson. Perf. Sir Ken Robinson. RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms. Youtube, 19 Oct. 2010. Web. 3 Apr. 2015.

Unknown. Parthenon Golden Ratio. Digital image. Math Is Fun. Math Is Fun, n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2015. <https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/images/parthenon-golden-ratio.jpg>.

Vesna, Victoria. "Mathematics-pt1-ZeroPerspectiveGoldenMean.mov." YouTube. YouTube, 9 Apr. 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.

Week 1 Blog Assignment | Two Cultures

Week 1 Blog Assignment | Two Cultures About Me ---  Hi everyone! My name is Justin and I am a senior here at UCLA: English Major with a double minor in both Digital Humanities and Global Studies. Coming into this course I would say that I have utilized a portion of my college career exploring the intersection of Art and Technology through my minor in Digital Humanities, which takes humanities-based disciplines and makes them practical in relation to computers and digital technology. On a personal level, I love to piece together how topics connect; especially things seemingly disparate as the subjects of art and science. As I will be graduating this quarter and moving on to work in the Tech Industry of Silicon Valley next year, I will be curious to see how my passion for the arts will translate for me in a tech-heavy environment. About the Material ---  Week 1's introduction to the concept of "Two Cultures" was interesting to me not in it's novelty as a concept (I've heard of the recent Art x Tech bridges being built throughout my tenure as a Digital Humanities minor), but in the new resources that were presented that really helped me understand where the divergence came from between "art" and "science" in the first place. To me, the apparent and widened gap between the arts and the sciences is strongly evident in our culture today, but I enjoyed how this week took us back to understanding where and why this divergence has occurred, rather than simply acknowledging that the gap exists. Learning about CP Snow and his perspective on the Scientific Revolution was interesting to me. His thoughts on the emergence of a binary culture made sense in light of the fact that before the Scientific Revolution students only attended college for the arts/literature/etc., so science developed as something completely separate from that. From Professor Vesna's article I understood how CP's theories have influenced us today. Vesna's article "Third Culture" was not a wholly original concept, but rather built off of CP Snow's ideas. Back then subjects were segregated in two binaries, but through this class, a result of modern and progressive thinking, I am excited to see how they are coming together. The video by RSA Animate was the most influential to me was seeing how this divide has played out in the very school system I find myself a part of. Citation Correa, Justin. Justin Correa LinkedIn Photo. Digital image. LinkedIn. LinkedIn, n.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2015. Kandel, I. L. "The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution by C. P. Snow. New York, Cambridge University Press, 1959. 58 Pp. $1.75." The Educational Forum 24.4 (1960): 486-88. Web. Vesna, Victoria. "Toward a Third Culture: Being In Between." Leonardo 34.2 (2001): 121-25. Web. Candid shot of deceased British scientist, C. P. Snow. Digital image.Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 14 Jan. 2015. Web. 4 Apr. 2015. "C. P. Snow." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Jan. 2015. Web. 04 Apr. 2015. RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms. Prod. Abi Stephenson. Perf. Sir Ken Robinson. RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms. Youtube, 19 Oct. 2010. Web. 3 Apr. 2015. TwoCultures Part1. Perf. Victoria Vesna. TwoCultures Part1. Youtube, 30 Mar. 2012. Web. 3 Apr. 2015.