Week 1: Two Cultures

Growing up in a traditional Indian household, it was constantly reinforced that studying the sciences was cardinal to success in the future; anything else was dismissed as nugatory. As a result, I would often skip art, music or theater class and in consequence of nurture, I became fascinated with one subject in particular: Mathematics. Like most, my parents’ dream for me was to get the best education possible. Alas! One prerequisite was to get into a good university, and in this new age, good grades were no longer sufficient. Fortunately, my mother realized this early and enrolled me in a local college to learn one type of art of my choosing. As an avid fan of the popular show “Dragon Ball Z”, I hastily picked graphic design and began learning Adobe, only to later master the craft.

Figure 1. Some of my graphic design works.

Interestingly, artists and scientists are said to have a “curious distorted image of each another” characterized by “hostility and dislike” (Snow 4, 6). Indeed, growing up the way I have, I acknowledge having preconceived notions about the sciences being the better field. However, as I’ve delved deeper, I have realized that the relationship between the arts and sciences is not so much about superiority as it is about harmony. Consider, for example, drawing an image in Adobe illustrator. To size the image, we require appropriate ratio-based scaling to proportion images; to manipulate shapes and create patterns, geometry is necessary; to pick the ideal color, hexadecimal coding is key. Bevlin noticed that the process of design follows procedures not unlike those used in the sciences (24). Likewise in math, the need to observe various graphs and models – an aspect fueled by graphic design – is arguably imperative to better understand data and come up with holistic conclusions. One of the biggest technology firms, IBM, realized this early and hired “artists in residence” to explore the aesthetic potential of computer graphics (Youngblood 208).

Figure 2. “Combining Math and Design.” The Mathematics of Design – Fibonacci, Fractals & Polyhedra, https://inkbotdesign.com/the-mathematics-of-design/. Accessed 1 Apr. 2022.

Having acquired a better idea of Two Cultures, it's compelling to see the mention of a third culture conditioned on collaboration (Vesna 122). I, along with Kohlhagen, believe that bridging this gap can only be sought after by encouraging Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math (STEAM) –interdisciplinary approach to learning wherein students are encouraged to pursue both the sciences and the arts (28). After all, as Einstein put it: “The only source of knowledge is experience."

Figure 3. “The STEAM Framework.” Cooking with S.T.E.A.M., https://asiasociety.org/education/cooking-steam. Accessed 1 Apr. 2022.

Works Cited

Bevlin, Marjorie Elliott. Design through Discovery. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1984.

Kohlhagen, Christopher. Points of Intersection: Finding Connections Between Design, Science and Math. 2017. Florida Atlantic University, Thesis. http://fau.digital.flvc.org/islandora/object/fau%3A39767/datastream/OBJ/view/Points_of_Intersection_Finding_Connections_Between_Design__Science_and_Math.pdf.

Snow, C. P. The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution. Cambridge University Press, 1959.

Vesna, Victoria. “Toward a Third Culture: Being in Between.” Leonardo, vol. 34, no. 2, 2001, pp. 121–125., https://doi.org/10.1162/002409401750184672.

Youngblood, Gene. Expanded Cinema. Studio Vista, 1970. 




Comments

  1. Jahred SullivanApril 3, 2022 at 1:20 PM

    I can tell that you put you considerable time into this post and related research, and that it flowed from a space of curiosity rather than compulsion. I'm aware of the Indian household stereotype of emphasizing the sciences, yet I'm curious how they took to you learning an "artistic" trade that improves your marketability... (Maybe the emphasis, then, is on doing something that brings success and is valuable in the working world, which graphic design neatly fits that requisite.) You reconciled the idea of two conflicting cultures with your line about how the relationship between art and science is less about superiority and more about harmony-- wonderfully said!! I'm also a visual learner, and I found that the image you had of the overlapping geometric features placed over various logos was perfectly included and allowed me to further appreciate the mathematical work of design experts. Finally, thanks for sharing the concept of STEAM as this is the first time that I have learned of this progressive framework surrounding college curricula. I am curious to see how you take to next week's topic, Math+Art. Again, great job here!

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