Week 9: Space and Art

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 Space and art have many intersections that have been important all throughout history. The topic of space and art also intersect with the many other topics we have covered in this course, including robotics, biotech, nanotechnology, and math. The wide range of intersections is really interesting, and this is a great way to sum up materials covered in this course.

The first thing that came to my mind when thinking about space and art, was how space has been portrayed in media. There are many movies and TV shows that portray space and the galaxy. For example, Interstellar, a film made in 2014, is about a team trying to find a new home for humans as earth becomes uninhabitable. I watched this a few years ago, and thought it was really intriguing. It was really well written and produced. It combined art and space, as it created a cinematic artistic experience, while combining elements of space and the solar system. Interstellar is one of many notable, space films, and showcases the intersection between art and space.

Interstellar movie cover


Another one of my favorite movies that have combined art and space is Hidden Figures. Hidden Figures came out in 2016 and is about three African American women who work at NASA who have to overcome many barriers in their field. I really liked this movie, as it incorporates many different aspects like art, space, women empowerment, and African American empowerment. As a women of color in STEM, I liked the women empowerment piece of the movie. This movie is also based on a true story. I think the representation of space in art is an important way to encourage kids to pursue different fields. The movie also showed the importance of art in math calculations. Accurate diagrams and drawings are necessary to successfully engineer the final product.

Hidden Figures movie cover

Another example of the intersection of space and art is the American Aviator Alan Bean. Alan Bean accomplished many things in his life. He was an American naval officer and aviator, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. He was also the fourth person to walk on the moon. On top of all of that he is a famous artist. He has channeled his inspiration from his space adventures into paintings. These paintings use space and his experiences as an astronaut as inspiration. They were even featured in the National Air and Space Museum in Washington. 

Alan Bean Painting

Overall, art and space have lots of intersections. They have been very complementary and are not complete without the other. This is common theme I have learned throughout this class. Art intersects with many other fields.  

Sources:

Hidden Figures, www.hiddenfigures.com/. 

“Hidden Figures.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 May 2021, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hidden_Figures. 

Howell, Elizabeth. “NASA's Real 'Hidden Figures'.” Space.com, Space, 24 Feb. 2020, www.space.com/35430-real-hidden-figures.html. 

Jeff Foust. “When Space and Art Intersect.” The Space Review: When Space and Art Intersect, www.thespacereview.com/article/1460/1. 

NASA, NASA, www.nasa.gov/. 

Seitz, Matt Zoller. “Interstellar Movie Review & Film Summary (2014): Roger Ebert.” Movie Review & Film Summary (2014) | Roger Ebert, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/interstellar-2014. 

Stott, Nicole. “What It's like to Paint in Space-According to a NASA Astronaut.” Quartz, Quartz, qz.com/1578231/what-its-like-to-paint-in-space-according-to-a-nasa-astronaut/. 

“The First Paintings of Another World.” Alan Bean Art, Alan Bean Astronaut, Alan Bean Moonwalker, Alan Bean Paintings, www.alanbean.com/. 

Comments

  1. Yuuki Morishige DESMA9May 28, 2021 at 11:17 PM

    Hi Ali I enjoyed reading your blog. I agree with you that this weeks topic connects with all previous weeks' topics. I believe that in the long process of the pursuit of space, we discovered many different things along the way and those things such as as robotics are able to further our progress in learning about space. I also agree that the movie Hidden Figures is a great movie and how it relates a lot of topics that we learned in class by incorporating math, robotics, as well as art in showcasing the perseverance that the African American female mathematicians had to fight through racial and gender discrimination in order to not only get their job done but to help progress the exploration of space. Great job on your blog

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