Evan Zhu Week 4 Blog Discussion 1C

April 29, 2018

Medicine + Technology + Art

After studying this week’s material, I now realize that medical practitioners can be artists as well. Before this, I never thought about medicine and technology being art. These practitioners are always trying to stay ahead of the latest advancements and innovations in their particular fields. Virgil Wong says, “Medicine helps us live long lives. Art is about why we live” (Wong). One type of surgeon where you can physically see the work is a plastic surgeon. In Orlan’s documentary, she creates “carnal art” by undergoing several plastic surgeries on her body to show her beauty. Even though this was a form of art, I struggled to watch it myself as I thought it pushed the boundaries.

A second example of the merging of medicine and technology with art is when Diane Gromala speaks about virtual reality and how it can temporarily alleviate her chronic pain. I had never heard about this type of technology being used for medical purposes. I now can see the uses. I believe that if it works then that means something must be right.

Kevin Warwick was also able to find a way to incorporate the human body as well as technology and into his research. His studies incorporated the way the human brain works in order to develop robots that have the same thought process that humans do.

Sources

Vesna, Victoria . "Medicine + Technology + Art ."  24 Apr. 2017. Lecture.

Warwick, Kevin. "Kevin Warwick." Kevin Warwick. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2017.

Wong, Virgil . "Healthcare – Virgil Wong." Virgil Wong. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2017.

Gromala, Diane.  TED Talks. “TED AmericanRiviera – Diane Gromala – Curative

Powers of Wet, Raw Beauty.”  You Tube. YouTube, 07 Dec. 2011.  Web. 29 Apr.

2017.

MutleeIsTheAntiGod. "Orlan - Carnal Art (2001) Documentary." YouTube. YouTube, 13

Mar. 2011. Web. 29 Apr. 2017.

Evan Zhu Week 3 Event 1

April 22, 2018

Hammer Museum

I was able to attend the Hammer Museum today. I got to experience the amazing artwork found at the museum. Once I had got there, I was immediately surprised with the variety of art that they had. The one that caught my eye the most was The Tyranny of Consciousness. This is the first time that I have seen art in a museum in this form. It was a projection of 44 sunsets, a clock that counted down from 18 minutes, and a recording of Lady Bunny who is a famous drag queen. She essentially speaks about how the world would be a much better place if everyone were to be peaceful. She also says that we need to change this or else the world will be destined to fail. I thought that the sunsets showed the beauty that can be in the world which contrasts the recording of Lady Bunny. I also found it interesting how that “one” piece of art consisted of different types of media. It brought together a recording, projection, and a clock.

I think that The Tyranny of Consciousness is a perfect example of what we are learning about in this class. It shows that art is not just a painting but can use modern technology as well. My trip to the Hammer Museum has really broadened my perspective of what art entails. I think that it has had the greatest effect on me so far in the course just because I was able to experience it in person which is different than just looking a photos of it.  

 

Evan Zhu Week 3 Blog Discussion 1C

April 22, 2018

Robotics + Art

Ford’s assembly line is one of the largest industrial creations. An assembly line is a manufacturing process where parts are added as the semi-finished assembly moves from workstation to workstation where the parts are added in sequence until the final assembly is produced. This had an enormous impact on society. It caused production to increase, and cost to decrease (Vesna). The goal of the assembly line is to become more efficient and reduce unnecessary human labor. This could eventually lead to humans being overtaken by robots for daily tasks (Hanson).

In Professor Machiko Kusahara’s lecture, she talks about Japan’s infatuation with robots and how robots are not nearly as popular in Western Cultures. An example would be Astro Boy. He was created by Osamu Tezuka and used him to combine animation, entertainment, and art with robotics. Walter Benjamin says, “Even the most perfect reproduction of a work of art is lacking in one element: its presence in time and space…” (Benjamin). For Astro Boy, he gave the Japanese hope because he was created right after WWII.

David Hanson’s TED Talk about robots showing emotions and being able to respond to other people’s emotions, I started to think about them differently. In the film Wall-E, it shows that robots can have emotions and express them in very human-like ways. At the beginning, his only job was to pick up trash. He eventually falls in love with another robot. This movie shows that robots are closing to humans than we think and that will only be the case as technology advances.

Sources

"Astro Boy." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Apr. 2017. Web. 22 Apr. 2017.

Hanson, David. "Robots That "show Emotion"." David Hanson: Robots That "show

   Emotion" | TED Talk | TED.com. N.p., Feb. 2009. Web. 22 Apr. 2017.

Wall E. Dir. Andrew Stanton. Disney, 2008. Film.

Vesna, Victoria . "Robots and Art ." 19 Apr. 2017. Lecture.

"The Ford Model T Assembly Line." The Assembly Line: US History for Kids ***. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2017.