Similarities and Contrasts in the Creative Processes of the Sciences and the Arts

Leonardo ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger Guillemin
Keyword(s):  
Art And Science ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
The Arts

The author describes his experiences as first a scientist and later an early digital artist, which led him to recognize both similarities and contrasts in the thinking and practice of art and science.

scholarly journals Art and science: Chalk and cheese

2006 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 13-14
Author(s):  
Lewis Wolpert
Keyword(s):  
Visual Arts ◽  
Art And Science ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Two Cultures ◽  
Industrial Management ◽  
Common Culture ◽  
The Arts

The enthusiasm to bring the arts and science closer together, even to emphasize similarities, is rather peculiar, as they are so very different. They are not two cultures, as pronounced by C.P. Snow, but both are aspects of a common culture that includes industrial management, engineering, banking, architecture, economics, politics and sport. Yet the journal Nature has recently devoted 30 of its much sought after pages to just this link. I remain puzzled, even bemused, at the continuing efforts to show that art -- particularly the visual arts -- is very similar to science, both in content and in the creative processes involved.

The Poetry and Music of Science

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom McLeish
Keyword(s):  
School Leaver ◽  
Creative People ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Arts And Sciences ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Arts ◽  
The Two Cultures ◽  
Personal Accounts ◽  
Poetry And Music

‘I could not see any place in science for my creativity or imagination’, was the explanation, of a bright school leaver to the author, of why she had abandoned all study of science. Yet as any scientist knows, the imagination is essential to the immense task of re-creating a shared model of nature from the scale of the cosmos, through biological complexity, to the smallest subatomic structures. Encounters like that one inspired this book, which takes a journey through the creative process in the arts as well as sciences. Visiting great creative people of the past, it also draws on personal accounts of scientists, artists, mathematicians, writers, and musicians today to explore the commonalities and differences in creation. Tom McLeish finds that the ‘Two Cultures’ division between the arts and the sciences is not after all, the best classification of creative processes, for all creation calls on the power of the imagination within the constraints of form. Instead, the three modes of visual, textual, and abstract imagination have woven the stories of the arts and sciences together, but using different tools. As well as panoramic assessments of creativity, calling on ideas from the ancient world, medieval thought, and twentieth-century philosophy and theology, The Poetry and Music of Science illustrates its emerging story by specific close-up explorations of musical (Schumann), literary (James, Woolf, Goethe) mathematical (Wiles), and scientific (Humboldt, Einstein) creation. The book concludes by asking how creativity contributes to what it means to be human.

Mystics, Shamans, and Visionary Arts

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer
Keyword(s):  
Mystical Experience ◽  
Cultural Anthropology ◽  
Artistic Expression ◽  
Multiple Time ◽  
Sacred Sites ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Wassily Kandinsky ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Cave Paintings ◽  
Art For Art's Sake

Diverse theories and cases are associated with artistic expression attributed to mystical experience. To showcase variety as well as underlying commonalties, the intersecting experiences of mystics, shamans, and visionary arts builds on understanding shamanic altered consciousness in multiple time periods, attunement to nature manifest through art and sacred sites, and modernist impulses beginning in the 20th century. Cases range from prehistoric cave paintings of Chauvet and Lascaux to contemporary shamanic rituals of Siberia, from oracles, amphitheaters, and firewalking in Ancient Greece to the calendrical mysteries of Egypt, Stonehenge, Crete, and Mesoamerica. The cosmology-saturated paintings of Wassily Kandinsky and the mystical mountains of Nicholas Roerich can be productively juxtaposed, since these artists created resonating movements of global followers. For deeper analysis, insights of artists, including poets and epic singers, into their creative processes can be combined with analytical literature on spirituality and visionary arts. Focus on roots of shamanic consciousness and on cases selected from cultural anthropology and art history shifts analysis away from famous examples of religious art within organized religions. Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, and Zoroastrian mystical traditions should be celebrated, but not at the expense of fluid and open-minded definitions of spirituality in the arts. This shifted gaze enables some conventional distinctions to be dissolved, for example, that between “art for art’s sake” and art that may result in individual and communal healing. In some interactive contexts of mystical artistic expression, distinctions between artists and their perceivers may also dissolve. In sum, mysticism and art are “eye of the beholder” phenomena. Experiences of mystics, shamans, and artists can be viewed as having significant interconnections without overgeneralizing about mysticism, shamanism, or the arts.

CHARLES BOURGEOIS (1759-1832), HIS ANTINEWTONIAN COLOUR THEORY AND THE RECONCILEMENT OF ART AND SCIENCE

Nuncius ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-48
Author(s):  
JOOST MERTENS
Keyword(s):  
White Light ◽  
Royal Academy ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Colour Space ◽  
Art And Science ◽  
The Arts ◽  
General Rules ◽  
Colour Theory ◽  
Composite Nature ◽  
Academy Of Sciences

Abstracttitle ABSTRACT /title Between 1810 and 1825, Charles Bourgeois (1759-1832), miniaturist, pigment manufacturer and physicist, developed a colour optics that defied both the Newtonian view of the composite nature of white light and the widely accepted strict separation between science and the arts. In this paper four themes are discussed: the general rules of colour mixing and the resulting three-dimensional colour space CEI (Couleur, Excdent, Intensit); Bourgeois' theory of light as a vehicle for non-luminous colours; His attempt at disproving Newton's central principle of the unequal refrangibility of different colours; and his relation, or rather non-relation, with the Royal Academy of Sciences which considered Bourgeois' theory of light a piece of nonsense.

“Seeing Law in Terms of Music” A Short Essay on Affinities between Music and Law

2017 ◽  
Vol 58 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 67-86
Author(s):  
Erika Arban
Keyword(s):  
Academic Discipline ◽  
Intellectual Structure ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Short Essay

It is often believed that law and the arts have very little in common, since law is perceived as a rather formalistic and inaccessible subject incapable of eliciting emotions in the same way as the arts. This article, however, aspires to offer a different picture : by exploring music in its interconnectedness with law, it condenses the main arguments discussed by literature to ultimately show that law and music may reveal, after all, surprising affinities, so that some thought-provoking parallels between them can be made. Similarly, the paper strives to find points of connection between law and music in order to show the profound resiliency of law as an academic discipline. Finally, the paper advances the idea that the unbridgeable distance between the two disciplines exists (partially) in appearance only and that, in spite of its allegedly technical nature, law is a very flexible field of knowledge whose intellectual structure can influence and inform other creative processes.

scholarly journals SASTRA LISAN DALAM PERKEMBANGAN TEKNOLOGI MEDIA: STUDI TERHADAP TRADISI SALAWAT DULANG DI MINANGKABAU

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Eka Meigalia ◽  
Yerri Satria Putra
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Oral Literature ◽  
Media Technology ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Digital Era ◽  
The Arts ◽  
The People ◽  
Technological Developments ◽  
Data Source

This paper explains the conditions of oral literature when dealing with the development of media technology. In addition, it explains the use of technologies and media developments in this digital era by oral literary actors in their creative processes for the continuity of tradition. For this reason, the tradition of salawat dulang which developed in Minangkabau was used as the primary data source for the study. The method in this research will be a qualitative. Meanwhile the technique of data collection is done by observation, interviews, and literature review. Based on the research conducted, salawat dulang is one of the oral literature that is able to survive because of its ability to adapt to technological developments. The text that is spoken is always updated according to the tastes of the people that are obtained by speakers through media such as television, radio or social media. Social media was used by speakers as a means of promotion and publication of their activities in the arts.

scholarly journals Preparatory planning framework for Created Out of Mind: Shaping perceptions of dementia through art and science

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilie Brotherhood ◽  
Philip Ball ◽  
Paul M Camic ◽  
Caroline Evans ◽  
Nick Fox ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Biomedical Sciences ◽  
Art And Science ◽  
Public Building ◽  
The Public ◽  
Arts And Sciences ◽  
Interdisciplinary Project ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Planning Framework

Created Out of Mind is an interdisciplinary project, comprised of individuals from arts, social sciences, music, biomedical sciences, humanities and operational disciplines. Collaboratively we are working to shape perceptions of dementias through the arts and sciences, from a position within the Wellcome Collection. The Collection is a public building, above objects and archives, with a porous relationship between research, museum artefacts, and the public.  This pre-planning framework will act as an introduction to Created Out of Mind. The framework explains the rationale and aims of the project, outlines our focus for the project, and explores a number of challenges we have encountered by virtue of working in this way.

scholarly journals Co-creativity: possibilities for using the arts with people with a dementia

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah Zeilig ◽  
Julian West ◽  
Millie van der Byl Williams
Keyword(s):  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Artistic Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Creative Agency ◽  
The Arts ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Nuanced Understanding ◽  
The Way

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of co-creativity in relation to artistic practice with people with a dementia. The aim of the discussion is to outline how co-creativity offers fresh approaches for engaging artists and people with dementia, can contribute to less restrictive understandings of “creativity” and above all, expand the understanding of people with a dementia as creative, relational and agential. Design/methodology/approach In order to examine current conceptions of co-creativity and to inform the artistic practice, relevant literature was explored and eight expert interviews were conducted. The interviews were thematically analysed and are included here. Findings This paper consequently demonstrates that improvisation, structure, leadership and equality are central elements of co-creative processes and outlines how co-creativity can offer fresh insights into the way in which the arts can engage people with a dementia, the relationship between creativity and dementia and the transformative potential of the co-creative arts for those living with a dementia. Research limitations/implications The paper discusses some of the difficulties that are inherent a co-creative approach, including power relations and the limitations of inclusivity. Due to ethical restrictions, the paper is limited by not including the perspectives of people living with a dementia. Practical implications This paper paves the way for future research into co-creative processes in a variety of different contexts. Social implications A more nuanced understanding of co-creativity with people with dementia could challenge the dominant biomedical and social paradigms that associate “dementia” with irretrievable loss and decline by creating opportunities for creative agency. Originality/value This exploration of co-creativity with people with dementia is the first of its kind and contributes to the wider understanding of co-creativity and co-creative practice.

scholarly journals Transcending utility? The gendered conflicts of a contemporary creative identification

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Taylor ◽  
Marie Paludan
Keyword(s):  
Visual Arts ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Cultural Industries ◽  
Creative Processes ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Creative Practice ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Art For Art's Sake ◽  
Therapeutic Utility ◽  
Psychology Of Creativity

The late 20th and early 21st centuries have been described as an age of creativity in affluent Western societies because of the increased popularity of the visual arts and the expansion of the global sector of the creative and cultural industries (CCI). The psychology of creativity has contributed new conceptualisations of creativity and creative processes, challenging associations that derive from the elite arts. This article investigates the implications of these changes for the gendering of creativity and creative practice. It asks if contemporary reconceptualisations of creativity open new possibilities for women to identify as creative practitioners. The article presents a critical discursive study of interviews with UK women maker-artists. The analysis shows how the women emphasise the practical applications or utility of their creative practice. A claim of utility can function to justify the practice. In addition, a claim of therapeutic utility, for others and for the artist herself, potentially addresses the neoliberal priority that people take responsibility for their personal well-being. However, the justification of utility contrasts with the creative vocation associated with the masculine elite artist who pursues “art for art’s sake”. The justification can therefore be seen to undermine the women’s creative identifications, reinstating the conventionally masculine status of creativity and the arts.

Introduction

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Tom McLeish
Keyword(s):  
Trial And Error ◽  
Art And Science ◽  
Work Of Art ◽  
Book Of Job ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Private And Public

This first chapter surveys the landscape of the book, and the questions it will seek to explore. By listening to the verbal associations we bring to arts and to science, we observe that one reason for the differences is that artists and scientists are private and public about different aspects of their work. Science only speaks of the creative, inspirational moments, more familiar in the arts, in hushed tones, while artists are less forthcoming about the arduous journey from concept to creation through experiment, trial, and error, an essential process closely shared with science. By listening to Einstein, Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Keats, and the biblical Book of Job, we conceive of the commonality of imagination within constraint that connects the work of art and science alike.

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