Coordinators of the exhibit are Natalie Nelson, director and curator of the Pence Gallery; and UC Davis professor of entomology and artist Diane Ullman, co-founder and co-director of the UC Davis Art Science/Fusion Program.
The work of 17 artists from a field of 85 worldwide artists are featured in the exhibit, which opened Jan. 26 and continues through March 2. The jurors--Jiayi Young, UC Davis assistant professor of design and Helen Donis-Keller, professor of biology and art at Olin College of Engineering, Mass.—will present the awards at the Feb. 9th reception at 8 p.m.
The exhibit includes installations, video, 2D and 3D work by contemporary artists in the United States and abroad who are exploring themes in both fields of art and science. Selected artists, who range from Davis to Spain, are Omar Armendariz, Kenna Doeringer, Tamren Dong, Annette Goodfriend, Belinda Hanson, Joe Hedges, Allison Leigh Holt, Rickie Jacobs, Stephen Kaltenbach, Pantea Karimi, Alexandra Knie, Robert Krawczyk, Chris Santa Maria, Gail Morrison, Jennifer E. Padilla, Melinda K. P. Stees, and Daniel Tran.
English polymath, scientist, Anglican priest, philosopher, theologian, and historian of science William Whewell (1794-1866) coined the term "consilience" in 1840. “Consilience is the linking together of facts and principles from different disciplines to form a broad, comprehensive theory that spans the realms of knowledge,” Whewell said. American biologist, researcher, theorist, naturalist and author E. O. Wilson brought consilience into the modern lexicon with his acclaimed book, “Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge.”
The goals of the exhibition, as announced last December, are three-fold: to show creative work that explores the intersection between art and science; to foster communication between the arts and sciences, and to spark new ways of viewing the world and ourselves, the organizers said.
Art juror Jiayi Young holds a master's degree in fine arts (multimedia and painting) from Washington State University, Pullman, Wash.; a master of science in atomic physics from Kansas State University, Manhattan; and a bachelor's degree in fine arts and physics, Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisc. She works in the field of digital media with an emphasis on the cross-disciplinary areas of design, integrating art and science with cutting edge technology. Young focuses her current creative work on constructing data-driven interfaces, installations, real-time projection graphics, and performances in public and cultural places.
Donis-Keller, who integrates the fields of art and biology, holds a master of fine arts in Studio Art from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Tufts University, and a doctorate in biochemistry and molecular biology from Harvard University. She says an appreciation for the natural world from the molecular level to the biosphere drives her art.
The exhibit is open from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday through March 2. Further information on the show is available from Nelson at (530) 758-3370 or penceartdirector@sbcglobal.net.