Week 9: Space and Art

Week 9: Space and Art

June 1,2019

Two significant factors in both science and art are the universe and space. An example that demonstrates this. well is Van Gogh's famous painting, The Starry Night. This painting portrays Gogh's actually observation when he looked at the night sky combined with his emotion, memories, and imagination. Along with Gogh's imagination, I feel like this is very common in what everyone perceives when looking at the sky: it's a combination of what one sees with the naked eye as well as what goes further beyond that – many of these factors are dependent on our imaginations and can be interpreted depending on each individual's different experiences.

In addition, scientific research has open many doors allowing us to further search into the universe and everything around us. One thing it allowed for was discovering other planets and even finding life on those planets and elsewhere. Alongside that, the way we are. able. to view space is greatly influenced by art in the form of movies, paintings, etc. One example is the movie E.T. which portrays how life from other planets and galaxies can be beautiful in their own way. 

Another correlation to how art shapes the way we view space is the artist Ron Miller. Miller is an artist who specializes in astronomy, science fiction, and fantasy in his works such as his depictions an "Ice World Canyon". I think space is a very fascinating thing to many people because it is endless assumptions since it is still so unknown in many aspects and can essentially span infinitely – this allows for our imaginations to run continuously as well as allows interesting and creative art to come from it, ranging from ideas of extraterrestrial life to representation of planets, galaxies, and the universe. 

Sources: 

1. Blumer, D., The illness of Vincent van Gogh. Am. J. Psychiatry, 159 (2002), pp. 519–526 

2. Foust, Jeff. “When space and art intersect.” The Space Review: When space and art intersect, 8 Sept. 2009, www.thespacereview.com/article/1460/1. 

3. “Ice World Canyon.” The Planetary Society Blog, www.planetary.org/multimedia/space-images/universe/ice-world-canyon.html.

4. Time Out New York. “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in Concert | Things to Do in New York.” Time Out New York, Time Out, 8 May 2017, www.timeout.com/newyork/things-to-do/e-t-the-extra-terrestrial-in-concert.

5. “Vincent Van Gogh - Starry Night Painting.” Saatchi Art, www.saatchiart.com/art/Painting-Vincent-van-Gogh-Starry-night/997136/3657602/view.