From science in art to the art of science

摘要

To generalize about the relationship between art and science is not so much hazardous as impossible. Neither science nor art are homogeneous categories. Just as science ranges from the observed complexities of environmental biology to the unseeable dimensions of theoretical physics, so art extends from the figurative representation of nature to the elusive abstractions of conceptual art. And even if we take just one area of science, say molecular biology, its expression in art may vary from straightforward iconographical reference (for instance, by allusion to the iconic double helix) to the use of molecular processes to form an unpredictable image. What is clear is that we serve any enquiry into art and science badly if our criterion is superficially the influence of science on art, or the influence of art on science. Deeper realms of enquiry concern complex dialogues centred on issues of cognition, perception, intuition, mental and physical structures, the communicative and social action of images, and the role of what we call the aesthetic as a shared instinct across the arts and sciences. There are as many potential relationships as there are artists who undertake profoundly imaginative scrutiny of science, and scientists who knowingly exploit their creative instincts in seeking what is 'true and beautiful'.