This blog has been a really interesting part of an online writing class I’ve been taking. As an engineering and theatre major, I have found the overlaps of art and science to be something really interesting to write about. I have spent days with scientifically minded individuals, and days with artistically-minded individuals, and I have seen first hand their differences. Their personalities for one are generally different, although that does not always seem to be the case. But, most of all, they both seem to be limited by the idea of what they can accomplish–the idea of “who” they are. I have heard countless engineers tell me how they don’t get art, aren’t artistic, and can’t draw. I’m asked all the time by people in the theatre department why I am an engineering major when I seem to be so creative. But, the fact of the matter is that their is no scientific evidence that we can only be one or the other. Especially in today’s web-connected world, I really do believe that anyone can learn anything.
Artists are creative, enjoy viewing others art, and like to make things–but so do engineers, scientists, bakers, dancers, doctors, businessmen, and machinists. Their are creative elements to almost every career. Even though, society may not consider a well performed surgery or a perfectly machined mechanical part to be artwork, their are people out there who look at these things with the same admiration and wonder as a painter views an artistic masterpiece. Art is often viewed as deep, meaningful, and sophisticated, but it doesn’t have to be. The only difference between something being “artistic” and not is somebody saying it’s that way. In that sense, almost anything can be seen as art, and you really can’t be wrong about art.
Scientists and engineers are curious, resourceful, and smart. They have questions about the universe, and are constantly looking for answers. They apply what they learn to projects and improvements on the world we live in. However, these things extend far beyond these fields. Artists often describe elements of their work as “happy accidents,” in other words they experiment and learn what works and what doesn’t. In fact, everybody has done some science in their lives. It’s been shown that babies learn through experimentation, suggesting that curiosity and science are pretty core human values.
This blog has really just scratched the surface of the overlaps of art and science. Both of these things are all around us, and the marriage of the two is almost magical. Keep your eyes open, be curious, and be open to everyone’s viewpoints and it won’t take long before these overlaps make themselves evident.
Signing off,
Alex Zenk
Art and Science 