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Ann McCoy's talk on her experience with the philosophy of alchemy and its influence on her artistic endeavors was fascinating not only due to its content but also because it tore down my nascent view of alchemy merely being a physical process that a niche group of people believe in. McCoy's explanation of symbolism within alchemy was a suiting introduction to a talk about how the field is very much entwined with art. For example, she presented a picture of a vase with three colored crows which stood for the three "primes" within alchemy.  The three primes expressed via symbolism It was also interesting to hear of how she started analyzing her dreams after a professional likened a childhood dream of hers with that of an ancient philosopher's. This account reminded of the 'two cultures' discussion from Week 1 as a psychiatrist may attribute such dreams and thoughts to chemical processes and past incidents in one's life whereas alchemists took them to be ...

While talking about the way mechanical reproduction of art affects people's responses to the art, Walter Benjamin opines that the art form of painting shows signs of a "crisis" when painters begin creating art while being cognizant of the fact that large masses might collectively view them in the way an audience views films (Benjamin, 1936). Unpacking this opinion makes it seem like Benjamin is suggesting that painters feel forced to modify their work if it can be reproduced and sent across the world. This is interesting but I do not agree with the premise of the argument which is that painters keep individual viewers' reactions in mind while making their paintings. Take for example an artist like Salvador Dali who created paintings after the ability to reproduce and distribute art came about - while Dali might have wanted to engender a strong reaction from people, the final idea regarding the painting is one that comes about from his own thoughts and experiences. In ...

Just yesterday a guide at the National Gallery in London was explaining to me and a group of fellow tourists how Turner's painting of Odysseus returning after defeating Polyphemus is a wonder given its use of perspective - the varying layers of space is stunning. This week's readings and lectures were thus great complementary introductions to how math influences art via geometry. Geometry helps artists decide upon how to shape their content; I learnt that painters often view shapes as geometric or organic and place objects like clouds under the latter category (Scott). It also influences how one interprets space in a painting and thus, as suggested by Pereira, can be used as a measure for human consciousness (Pereira).  Turner, William. "Odysseus Deriding Polyphemus" . National Gallery. The impact of mathematics in shaping is clearly seen in the art of sculpturing. Michelangelo's biography reveals that he was keen on understanding the movements of fluids like bloo...

When Professor Vesna writes of Weinberg’s haughty dismissal of the “critics of science” as people who are to be appeased solely for funding, my instincts push me to view science as the gatekeepers to the utopian alternative of perfect collaboration between the two cultures (Vesna, 2001). However, C.P. Snow’s observation that for scientists, artists are people who are ignorant of the most foundational concepts of what forms their entire body of study, pushes me to concede that artists too often view their work as more human and thus superior (Snow, 1959). Both these writings have helped me shape my understanding of the division between the two cultures and have opened my eyes to several examples of their friction.  As an aspiring business consultant, my research and conversations with recruiters from top firms reveal that they prefer hiring students with a science degree over an arts one since it is believed that they are trained to be more logical and hard-working (Desai, ...