Week 9 - Space + Art

"The Mountains of Eternal Light" by Miller -
how can you not resonate with this image?

Image of a comet from NASA

The creation of space art would not have been possible without the media attention and scientific discoveries that made space more accessible.  Professor Vesna described both mediums separately, detailing the advancement of telescopes that allowed us to see far away planets and the arms race that sensationalized the space exploration mission in the 20th century (Vesna).  However, without either aspect, we would not have seen the boom of science and art intersecting to bring the universe to the everyday person.

Because scientists may view art as a distraction to the advances of space now, “there used to be a much closer overlap between the imaginative source of science and art that was shared in the years before that caught so much of our imagination," (Foust).  From lecture, we discussed mostly the practicality of the space art, but along the way, I think the emotional and personal connection to space may have been forgotten.  Space art can be a medium to captivate audiences.  How else would this field have grown the way it has if people were not drawn to it?

After all, art is an avenue for "a glimpse back at the cutting-edge astronomy of yesteryear" (Grabianowski).  I enjoyed the take away that this medium allowed for the universe to be seen by more people beyond the scientists and astronauts working on the projects.  Throughout the course, we have seen this common theme - of art being used as a medium to bring the sciences to just about anyone.  While some may not understand the exact mathematical measurements of the universe for example, the photos and videos will hint at the immense enormity of space.

Depiction by astronaut and artist, Alan Bean,
who walked on the moon

However, beyond illustrating the reality of space through art, "many artists work closely with astronomers in creating scientifically accurate depictions of astronomical subjects, space artists have always felt free to interpret the wonders of astronomy and space exploration as they see fit" (Miller).  I saw this as a strength of space art, in that imagination and creativity are never limited to the constraints of what we discover.  The themes of space - the vastness and the unknown - are all things we can depict and recreate, with or without science.

Works Cited

Carroll, Michael.  "Space Art - Illustrating the Universe." Astronomy Today. Web. 29 May 2015. 

Foust, Jeff.  "When space and art intersect." The Space Review. 8 Sep. 2009.  Web. 29 May. 2015.

Grabianowski, Ed. "An Astounding History of Scientific Space Art from the Past 200 Years." io9 We Come From the Future. 20 Nov. 2014. Web. 29 May. 2015.

Miller, Roy. "The Art of Space, Envisioning the Universe (Op-Ed)." Space. 10 Nov. 2014. Web. 29 May. 2015.

Vesna, Victoria. "8 space pt1." Online video clip. Youtube. Youtube, 22 Apr. 2012. Web. 28 May. 2015.