Nanotech and Art
I found this week very interesting as we delved into all of the different uses of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is used in materials all the way from tennis balls and beer bottles, to drugs which reduce toxicity in chemotherapy for cancer patients. I was very interested in the way in which Dr. Gimzewski went into the way in which particles which, when they are large, are black, may be red, green, yellow, orange, and so on when they are brought down to smaller sizes.
Nanotechnology products and, particularly, the colors within it are potentially going to be used by makeup companies for pigment coloration. I am very interested in the way that nanotechnology is incorporated into art, such as the exhibit at A Perth International Arts Festival exhibition, in which nanotechnologies were used to create interactive art pieces, such as the one by Professor Vesna and James Gimszewkski, Nanomandala, in which a video is projected onto a disk of sand, and viewers get to touch the sand , as "oscillating images of the molecular structure of a single grain of sand" which is obtained by a scanning electron microscope. (SEM)
In the black and white image to the left, Orfescu visualized the image with a scanning electtron microscope. The photo was then captured by a computer, and Orfescu then continued to manipulate it digitally. I find this image, and the entire process, extremely interesting. While these microscopes and imageries are often used to teach scientists, or medical students about the microscopic world, I find it incredible that Orfescu has chosen to create these images for the use of all people, and particularly as an artistic piece rather than an educational one.
Perhaps the topic which interested me the most this week was the making of new materials and making smaller materials under Nova's Making stuff: Smaller. The idea of us having tiny robots which go inside our body to help fight cancer or kill "rogue cells" is an unimaginable breakthrough, which scientists are working on to this day. The possibilities that creating tiny micro robots could have on our future are endless, as scientists are working on developing microscopic robots as well as new materials which could make something as insane as an elevator to the moon, or bridges held up by threads. I am very interested in the idea of creating new materials and tiny robots to further both society and health, and I look forward to seeing where these advancements can take us in the future.
Works Cited
Orfescu, Cris. "Nanoart21." Cris Orfescu. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 May 2016.
"Art in the Age of Nanotechnology." Art.base. John Curtin Gallery, n.d. Web.
"Cris Orfescu." Cris Orfescu. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 May 2016.
"Nanotech for Artists Part 2" Unit 8. Dr. Gimzewski
"Making Stuff: Smaller." NOVA. PBS, n.d. Web. 22 May 2016.
Hi Hayleye, I also find incorporating nanotechnology into art very interesting. Though I am not familiar with Chris Orfescu's work, after reading your post, I want to look more into Cris Orfescu's work. I'm curious if his primary focus is to make 2 dimensional work using nanotechnology tools used the scientist and his overall concept and the process. And based on what you mentioned in the last paragraph, I found this week's topic could be easily relate to the robotic as well. It's just fascinating to think how small robots could go inside human body to operate medical procedure.
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