Medicine + Technology + Art

                Plastic surgery has made an impactful change on both the human body and the art world. This week’s agenda has broadened my perspective on the impact that medical technology has on the art of the human body. I will further look at the political significance plastic surgery by highlighting its origin and developmental background.

The human body has always been in a state of shifting and is constantly manipulated in everyday society. Columbia University Medical School was one of the first hospitals that acknowledged medical technologies impact on the increase of human body reformation. These reformations came with the insurances and insecurity of our bodies alone and harmful diseases around World War I. Plastic surgery had also made its presence thousands of years before World War I in the East of Ancient India. By using skin graphs, European explorers were able to progress on this idea of body reformation to create the medical constructive process that we now know as “Plastic Surgery” (Vesna, Week 4). Similar to the MRI scanning on how sounds makes the body become more aware of the wholeness of their bodies, image as a whole also keeps the body and human alert at all times in society. (Casini 99).

                The emergence of DNA and genes had first given rise to a new mechanism for generating structural diversity that eventually accelerated evolution (Ingber, 57). Plastic surgery can be seen as the modern version of that process. Many artists such as Orlan and Amalia Ulman both practice the art of plastic surgery as both a statement of beauty and of political society. In Orlan’s case, the use of having plastic surgery as famous painting such as the Mona Lisa, is the result of beauty being the “product of the dominant ideology. When ideology changes, the body follows” (Frank 2). Amalia Ulman believes to have plastic surgery on her breasts as the latest art world foray into critiquing capitalism in middle-class society. Although plastic surgery at times can be seen to draw attention to the privilege of not only the artist, but the person, plastic surgery can also shed light on an untold truth of society (Mallet 5). The notion that the “perfect body” or “flawless beauty” is only a concept capitalized and molded by society’s hierarchical ideologies. Thus, we must acknowledge the artists who risk several factors of their life in order to produce a profound statement.

Citations

Casini, Silvia. "Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI Configurations between Science and the Arts." Cal Foscari Universita Di Veneczia II (1998): 98-99. Print.

Frank, Priscilla. "ORLAN Talks Plastic Surgery, Beauty Standards And Giving Her Fat To Madonna (PHOTOS, INTERVIEW, NSFW)." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/29/performance-artist-orlan-interview-beauty-surgery_n_2526077.html>.

Ingber, Donald. "The Architecture of Life." Scientific American II (1998): 56-57. Print.

Mallet, Whitney. "What’s Behind Amalia Ulman’s Plastic Surgery As Art?" Bullett Media. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://bullettmedia.com/article/whats-behind-amalia-ulmans-plastic-surgery-art/>.

Vesna, V. Desma 9 Week 4: Art and Medicine. 2015. Film.

Robotics + Art

                I was inspired to write about the topic of “knowledge production” and its influence on industrialization when learning about the printing press machine. Knowledge production can be signified as all forms of information production such as technological innovations, cultural creativity and academic advancement. For the purpose of this blog, I will focus on knowledge production during the industrial revolution. Industrialization transformed itself during its 2^nd revolution in the 19^th century when more and more technological advances came about. The printing press machine was a big success when it came to knowledge production in a sense that newspapers, magazines, and all type of critical news products were distributed. It is because of this industrial technological advancement that knowledge production was able to move forward.

                With advancement in knowledge production through innovations such as the printing press, substantial data sets of knowledge traveled through many disciplines across space and time (science, art, math, etc.). During industrialization, the camera and digital reproduction came about and challenged the idea of “authentication”, especially in art. It is with these industrialization innovations of the camera, film, etc. that there is no longer a clear conceptual distinction between the original and reproduction in virtually any medium.  In Benjamin’s article, he mentions that the reproduction of art and film lack the idea of the presence in time and space in comparison to the concept of the authenticity. In other words, an art form that is produced exactly from its original can change instantly, even as a replica, with its setting of time and place. Industrialization brought art and multiple disciplines into a new light with the development of progressive innovations. 

                I learned a great deal especially with the idea of knowledge production and industrialization through artistic innovations. Art began with a simple paint brush and now has crossed all borders to its current state of innovation in the modern era. In comparison to painters, film makers bring the permeation of reality with mechanical equipment. The world becomes more and more progressive as knowledge production increases. It is only a matter of time before the next innovator reads an article online and comes up with a technological idea that will contribute to the world of art.

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Citations:

Ambrozic, Maria. "Art as a Thinking Process." Steenburg Papers. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. <http://www.elia-artschools.org/images/products/110/art-as-a-thinking-process-visual-forms-of-knowledge-production.pdf>.

Polluck, Rufus. "Exploring Patters of Knowledge Production." University of Cambridge. Web. 20 Apr. 2015. <http://rufuspollock.org/papers/patterns.pdf>.

Douglas DavisLeonardo, Vol. 28, No. 5, Third Annual New York Digital Salon. (1995), pp. 381-386.

Benjamin, Walter. The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. 1936. 29-31. Print.

Desma 9 Week 3 Lecture. 2015. Film.

Math + Art + Science

Mathematics influencing art and science has been a perspective with multiple dimensions. Mathematics is key to not only the study, but the foundations of both art and science. Analysts such as Henderson and Flatland both see mathematics as a great influence in a sense that mathematics allows both artists and scientists to go beyond simple solutions using mathematical theories and practices. But in the grand scheme of things, art and science is not just another way to solve mathematical solutions, but rather ways to creatively express and discover new aesthetic products and capabilities.

In Henderson’s article, he analyzes idea of mathematics in art and science with the fourth dimension. He mentions that artists who concentrated on the fourth dimension alone owed something to the Non-Euclidean geometrics that had prepared the way for the acceptance of alternative kinds of space. Henderson also states that the mathematical fourth dimension was primarily a symbol of liberation and encouraged artists to depart from visual reality by rejecting the one-point perspective system by the three dimensions used for centuries. Overall, mathematics has been used as a great stepping stone for both art and science. For science, mathematics works in improving research methods and calculations synonymously. For art, mathematics gains the trust of the artists by challenging their understanding of depicting the difference between realism and surrealism. For both art and science, mathematics allows the concept of “nature” in each field to be measurable and attainable. In comparison to the figure below, most are thrown off by the idea of mathematics conjoined with art and science. In reality most people are thrown off by the concept of putting two different things side by side. I was on that same boat until I stopped and actually thought about why math, art and science work harmoniously.

In Flatland’s article, he mentions the idea of teaching an individual the progression of art from a single point of one dimension, to a line of two dimensions and so forth. Like so, if it weren't for art, science, and math existing, we wouldn't witness some of the most beautiful progressions known to mankind. Whether that may be progress in music, nature, or a painting, math has a great influence on both art and science just as much as art and science influences mathematics…simple and beautiful as that.  

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Citations:

Henderson, Linda Dalrymple. The Fourth Dimension and Non-Euclidean Geometry in Modern Art: Conclusion. Leonardo, Vol. 17, No. 3. (1984), pp. 205-210.

Abbott, Edwin A. A Romance of Many Dimensions. (1884) pp. 30-36.

Xyara, Dywiann. "Abstract-scientist on DeviantArt." Abstract-scientist. June 4, 2015. http://abstract-scientist.deviantart.com/.

Week 1: Two Cultures

Hello peers and instructors of Desma 9! My name is Rachel Aquino. I am looking forward to what Desma 9 has in store for all of us! This week we are covering the topic of “Two Cultures”.

As a Pilipina-American, the concept of “Two Cultures” speaks to me ever since I was a born. I am a first generation, meaning my parents immigrated to the United States from the Philippines. I’ve grown up in America learning the Pilipino culture, lthe Pilipino mannerisms, and eating the Pilipino food. I’ve actually never eaten a Cheese burger till I was 8 years old. For my parents, they wanted to instill the Pilipino roots in me before adopting the American lifestyle.

Going to UCLA, it was a hard transition for me because I was surrounded by so many Filipinos and minorities who had similar backgrounds. Our parents coming to America for a better life. UCLA definitely challenged me to not necessarily clash the two cultures together, but define one culture that may or may not blend the American and Pilipino cultures.

This relates to the readings with the idea of two cultures or two different worlds acting as one. According to the readings by Vesna and Snow about “Two Cultures”, what captivated me the most was the concept of the “bridge” between art and science. Snow predicts a day when literary intellectuals will communicate effectively with scientists. This however can be a long shot. Most of the arts and sciences construe misconceptions of one another because both of their works do not cover multiple disciplines. According to Vesna and Snow, universities and academia is the best place for art and sciences to thrive. This is due to the fact that both areas are encouraged to contact scholars of multiple disciplines and academia allows both the arts and sciences to engage in the most recent technological advances. Vesna and Snow cover the notion that if we think of arts and sciences the same way academia perceives the arts and sciences, aiming for the same goal, there would be fewer misconceptions.

These perceptions from the readings made me think a lot about my own culture as a Pilipina-American and the culture that I had nourished as a Bruin. By changing to my environment, remembering your roots while still being willing to adapt and grow is the best culture there is. 

*Citations*

Vesna, Victoria, Toward a Third Culture: Being in between, Leonardo, Vol. 34, No. 2 (2001) pp 121-125

Snow, C.P. The Two Cultures and The Scientific Revolution, Seventh Edition 1961, pp 1-55

"Twenty Fil Am Authors to Sign at Launching of the Philippine Heritage Collection." January 1, 2010. Accessed April 6, 2015. https://philippineexpressionsbookshop.wordpress.com/2012/10/.

"Uncontrollable Destiny." Uncontrollable Destiny. Accessed April 6, 2015. http://theillusionherself.blogspot.com/.

Sharma, Ritu. "Connecting Art and Science." The Art and Science of Content Marketing. Accessed April 6, 2015. http://www.pagetrafficbuzz.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Content-Art-and-Science-Edits.jpg.