Week 9 Blog

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Part 3 of the lecture discussed the cultural impact of the Sputnik satellite (Vesna, 2024). I can see how the round, metallic, and spherical design of the satellite is an important feature. The design of the satellite signifies modernity and technological progress. Even looking at the image of the satellite now it still looks modern and slick in this day and age- I can imagine the impact was even greater at the time it was launched in the late 50s. I thought it was interesting that the modern design of Sputnik triggered responses  of anxiety and fear from the public. 


In lecture part 4, Dr. Vesna discusses the impact of the first man on the moon (Vesna, 2024). This was not just a monumental achievement in space exploration but also a significant cultural and artistic milestone (Vesna). The image produced by the moon landing served as iconic symbols of the 20th century and served as inspiration for artists. Andy Warhol incorporated moon landing themes into his art, mixing  space imagery with his contemporary artistic style (Masterworks Fine Art Gallery). Consider the image below of Warhol’s Moonwalk, made in 1987.

(Masterworks Fine Art Gallery).


Another way that art, science, and technology intersect is in the visual way we can represent space. Technological advancements can act as a bridge between science and art, providing tools that allow us to see the universe in newer and clearer ways. One example cited below is the improvements of the Hubble 2016 telescope to the Webb 2023 telescope. The higher resolution and more defined colors of the Webb image give it a dreamy aesthetic, compared to the flatter resolution of the Hubble image. 

Another example of the intersection of technology art and science is the project the Moon Symphony’s- which combines not only visuals but audio and technology as well. The Moon Symphony's mission is “celebrating the convergence of music and science to vividly portray past, present, and future lunar explorations.” (The Moon Symphony's). Such projects allow scientists and artists to come together to depict our solar system in a highly artistic way that is appealing to the public. 

(NASA).


Consider the image below, which compares two images of the Carina Nebula, both shot by the Hubble telescope. The image on the left is of visible light, while the image on the right is of infrared (NASA). In the image with infrared light- more stars can be seen. These technological advancements- of using infrared light, allow us to see our universe in a greater capacity. 


Overall, Dr. Vesna's lectures showcase the intersection between scientific achievements such as the moon landing, space race; and artistic expression. The intersection of art, science, and technology is also apparent through looking at the differences in the representation of space through different telescopes, or the same telescope over time. 

(NASA).



Works Cited

Masterworks Fine Art Gallery. “Andy Warhol, Moonwalk, 1987 FS 405.” MFA, 2024, https://www.masterworksfineart.com/artists/andy-warhol/screen-print/moonwalk-1987/id/W-6439. Accessed 31 May 2024.

The Moon Symphony's. Wikipedia, 2024, https://www.moons-symphony.com/?trk=article-ssr-frontend-pulse_little-text-block. Accessed 1 June 2024.

NASA. “Comparison: Webb vs Hubble Telescope - Webb/NASA.” James Webb Space Telescope, 2024, https://webb.nasa.gov/content/about/comparisonWebbVsHubble.html. Accessed 31 May 2024.

NASA. “Webb Images.” Wikipedia, 2024, https://science.nasa.gov/mission/webb/multimedia/images/. Accessed 31 May 2024.

Vesna, Victoria. Lecture, Week 9, Part 3. 2024.

Vesna, Victoria. Lecture, Week 9, Part 4. 2024.

Vesna, Victoria. Lecture, Week 9, Part 5. 2024.

Comments

  1. Quincy McMahonJune 1, 2024 at 1:31 PM

    Hi Madison,
    Thank you so much for your thoughtful response. I really made sense to me when you made the point that technology can serve as a bridge between art and science. It is so true that advance technology can serve science but also give use clearer pictures of what the universe looks like which also inspires art. I think another example of this is how a lot of technology has been inspired by science fiction. Science fiction is such a unique genera because a lot of the things people come up with could potentially be a reality and could be applied in order to understand the universe. I also really liked the images you put in from the telescopes. I have never seen these images before and it is crazy to me that each image is of the same thing but looks so different because different telescopes are more sensitive to different features of space.

    ReplyDelete

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