Art & Science

8 July – 24 September 2011
Private View Thursday 7 July  2011
GV Art Gallery, 49 Chiltern Street, Marylebone, London W1U 6LY

Oron Catts, Ionat Zurr and Guy Ben-Ary, Pig Wings, 2000-2002. Pig bone marrow stem cells, differentiated into bone tissue, approx 4 x 1 x 0.4 in cm, each set. Medium: Bone tissue and degradable polymer scaffold. Cultured and grown for nine months in shapes of wings: The Chiropteran, Aves and Pterosaurs versions. © The Tissue Culture & Art Project.

Science is changing our world and our lives at an ever increasing rate. But today artists are bringing science out of the laboratory.

Once art and science seemed diametrically opposite; but these days some of the most innovative artists are fusing art and science to create a brand new art movement inspired by science. Striving to visualise the invisible and what it must mean to be human in the future, they create images and objects of stunning beauty, redefining the notion of aesthetic and of what is meant by art.

These days the term ‘art and science’ is on everyone’s lips – but no one quite knows what it is or where it is going. Does it mark the rise of a new culture in which science and technology will be the driving forces and will even perhaps determine the future of culture? Are there similarities in the creative processes of artists and scientists? Can science benefit from art? And can considering these questions bring us any closer to understanding creativity? This exhibition is a step towards exploring these key issues of the 21st century.

GV Art gallery is a hub for collaborations between artists and scientists for exhibitions and discussions.

Professor Arthur I. Miller, co-curator and chair of the panels, will lead discussions in the gallery exploring the issues raised. The artists in the exhibition will also discuss with the audience to further the debate.

Arthur I. Miller is the author of ‘Einstein, Picasso’ among many other books, and is working on a new book, tentatively titled ‘The Creative Revolution’, investigating the new field of science-inspired art.

Artists Susan Aldworth, Davide Angheleddu, Andrew Carnie, Annie Cattrell, Oron Catts, Katharine Dowson, Helen Pynor, David Marron, Nina Sellars, Stelarc, Ken + Julia Yonetani and Ionat Zurr.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

ARTHUR I. MILLER is emeritus professor of history and philosophy of science at University College London. Although the theory of elementary particles was his interest – he has a PhD in physics – his passion was always the ‘What is the nature of …’ questions.  He is fascinated by the nature of creative thinking – creativity in art on the one hand and science on the other. What are the similarities, what are the differences? He is the author of Einstein, Picasso, nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, and Empire of the Stars, shortlisted for the 2006 Aventis Prize for Science Books. His most recent book is Deciphering the Cosmic Number: The Strange Friendship of Wolfgang Pauli and Carl Jung (paperback title, 137: Jung, Pauli and the Pursuit of a Scientific Obsession). Presently he is working on a book, tentatively titled ‘The Creative Revolution’, looking into the exciting new field of science-inspired art. For more, visit – www.arthurimiller.com.