Science and Art

Science is defined as the “systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation”. Change ‘natural world’ to media and ‘observation’ to practice and you have a sound definition for art as well. Art, like science, is concerned with how things work independently, together, and in a variety of conditions. It involves years, decades, and sometimes even a lifetime to understand why things react the way they do, both in art, and in science. Perhaps that’s why contemporary artists are so fascinated with science and the effects that color, light, texture, space, and environment, can have on the human brain.

In the fifteenth century Leonardo da Vinci was fascinated with the human form and dissected an estimated thirty corpses to better understand anatomy. He took meticulous notes of his findings, and his renderings of muscle and bone are so well executed they are revered as works of art despite simply being notes. It was da Vinci who really set the stage for art being viewed through a scientific lens. A deep thinking and excellent observer, Leonardo’s study of nature, anatomy, and physics led to a deep understanding of the human form and his drawings were more lifelike because of this attention to detail and in-depth knowledge. Fast forward to the late 1800’s and George Seurat is creating paintings with small dots of color to force the eye to mix the desired colors optically. Fascinated by color theory Seurat turned to science in search of a way to evoke stronger emotion in a painting through color. He developed a technique known as chromoluminarism or pointillism, painting with dots of color.

From cave paintings made in 43,000 B.C. to today, artists have been driven to document their environment. To peek inside plants, animals, and humans, to see the mechanics behind them. It’s human nature to want to know why things are the way they are, and artists are not immune to this condition. Quite the opposite. They not only want to know the mechanics of the world but also the properties of the media they use. Further, they want to know how each of these ideas affects each other and how science, art, and or both together, can be used to improve the human condition. Artists have been making connections between science and art since the fifteenth century and their findings have had a positive effect on the contemporary art world.

Edi Rama is an intriguing example of how science and art go hand in hand. A former Prime Minister of Albania and mayor of Tirana, Edi was first a painter. His father was a sculptor, and his mother pursued a degree in medicine. This gave Rama an opportunity to see how science and art go hand in hand. When Edi became mayor of Tirana in 2000, he inherited a dangerous and rundown city. To turn things around, he began by commissioning artists to paint the city. He chose “vibrant hues and gaudy patterns to disrupt the bleakness of the urban landscape” (Fetell 13-14), and it worked. Slowly the streets became cleaner and safer, stores removed the iron bars from their windows, and people started to gather. Tirana became a thriving city all because of some bold colors that infused the city with life. That is science at work through art. It is well documented that color affects mood. From prisons to restaurants, color is carefully considered to inspire the best behavior from inmates to patrons. Thus, it’s not shocking at all that Rama’s idea worked. No one wants to live in a dirty and run-down city. Sweeping by with a trash truck each night and painting over graffiti is not enough. You must change the entire vibe and mood of the city and that’s exactly what happened.

Another captivating example of science and art joining forces is evident in the architectural forms designed by the artist and poet couple, Shusaka Arakawa and Madeline Gins. They believe that with the right design, a house can “actually prolong the lives of its inhabitants” (Budds). Bioscleave House and their Tokyo lofts projects are two examples of this concept. By having visitors walking on lumpy mounds, crawling across the ground, leaning in deeply to remain standing at the sink, they are forcing the mind to experiment and work in new ways. Your neurons are firing, your heart rate is elevated, you feel alive and by all accounts, are having fun. Arakawa and Gins are using the science of movement, play, color, and thought, to craft spaces that are both art and science. Both aesthetically pleasing and physically invigorating. I have no doubt that if da Vinci was still alive today, he would be living in Bioscleave House and his mind would be leaning towards even more discoveries.

This is the power of combining science and art. Separately, they are fascinating fields that one can spend their lifetime researching. Find a way to merge the two, however, and you open the mind to so much more than seeing an image or sculpture. It becomes a visceral part of you that, like the city of Tirana, can transform your life. That is why I am so excited to be researching joy for my own artwork. Science has made a lot of discoveries about how the brain responds to certain stimuli. How color, play, surprise, pattern, touch, and so on, can impact your physical wellbeing and mood. By combining current scientific research and data with color theory and contemporary painting practices, I hope to create work that is as transformative for the viewer as Seurat’s pointillist paintings or the Bioscleave House is for its occupants. Art can have a positive impact on its audience and that is what I want to dig deep into and embrace. I want my art to leave the viewer feeling better and lighter for their time with it. I want joy to become something they seek out. For the science of art and the art of science to lead my creative process into new ways of making and seeing.

Works cited

"Biography of Georges Seurat, Father of Pointillism." Thought Co, 3 Jul. 2019,

www.thoughtco.com/georges-seurat-4686278#:~:text=Seurat%20believed%20that%20he%20could%20create%20a%20new,rather%20than%20the%20artist%20mixing%20pigments%20before%20painting. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.

Budds, Diana. "Why Was It So Hard to Sell a House That Promised Eternal Life?" Curbed, 19

Aug. 2021, www.curbed.com/2021/08/bioscleave-house-arakawa-and-ginss-masterpiece-has-sold.html. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.

Fetell Lee, Ingrid. Joyful. Hachette Book Group, 2018. pp. 13-14.

Kleiner, Fred S. Garner's Art Through The Ages. 17th ed., Cengage Learning, 2015. pp. 855-

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"Leonardo Da Vinci: A Life in Drawing: Nationwide." Royal Collection Trust, 2 May 2016,

www.rct.uk/collection/exhibitions/leonardo-da-vinci-a-life-in-drawing/the-muscles-of-the-shoulder-and-arm-recto-the-muscles-of-the-shoulder-and-arm-and-the-bones-of-the/. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.

"Leonardo Da Vinci Drawings: 5 Lessons from the Renaissance Master." The Drawing Source,

www.thedrawingsource.com/leonardo-da-vinci-drawings.html. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.

"Why Was It So Hard to Sell a House That Promised Eternal Life?" Curbed, 19 Aug. 2021, www.curbed.com/2021/08/bioscleave-house-arakawa-and-ginss-masterpiece-has-sold.html. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.