Posts Tagged: Pence Gallery

Don't Miss 'Specimens'

When you fuse art with science--or science with art--the end results can be stunning.

The UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program and the Pence Gallery, Davis, are co-sponsoring a “Consilience of Art and Science Exhibit,” set Jan. 14-Feb. 27, at the Pence Gallery, 212 D St., Davis.

This will include several special events: a reception on Jan. 14 from 6 to 9 p.m.; a talk by Byron Wolfe, photographer and professor of art at California State University, Chico, who will discuss the work of pioneer photographer Eadweard Muybridge; and a juror’s walk-through from 6 to 7 p.m.,  Feb. 11. All are free and open to the public. (See more information.)

Diane Ullman, co-founder and co-director of the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program, and James Housefield, professor of design at UC Davis, juried the show, which drew artists from California, including Davis and northern California; New Mexico, Oregon, Washington state, and New York.

“The artwork we received from artists across the nation explores the creative nexus where art and science interconnect," said Ullman, associate dean for undergraduate academic programs at the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and professor of entomology.  "The exhibit is visually and intellectually exciting and we commend the Pence Gallery for sponsoring it.”

Said Housefield: "Artists' investigations of the forms, structures, practices, and philosophies of science have provided long provided ways for the general public to dream about what art and science can become. We are very fortunate that the resources of the University of California, the arts communities of Davis, and a national array of contemporary artists come together in the space where art and science meet. I hope that this version of the 'Consilience' exhibition will spark more conversations about the ways that artists and scientists may inspire one another."

One of the works, by Joanna Kidd of Davis, is titled "Specimens." It is comprised of three wall cases and a floor case.  Specimens are small human sculptures (see top photo), all pinned and displayed as they would be in an insect collection.

So very creative!

Housefield's comment about the ways that artists and scientists can inspire one another definitely holds true with "Specimens."

Diane Ullman

ENTOMOLOGIST-ARTIST Diane Ullman served as a juror for "The Consilience of Art and Science Exhibit," to run Jan. 14-Feb. 27 at the Pence Gallery, Davis. Ullman and Davis artist Donna Billick co-founded and co-direct the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

James Housefield

PROFESSOR OF DESIGN James Housefield of UC Davis juried the art show with entomologist-artist Diane Ullman. (Photo by Taylor Lahey)

Specimens

'SPECIMENS' by artist Johanna Kidd of Davis is comprised of three wall cases and a floor case. Specimens are small human sculptures, all pinned and displayed as they would be in an insect collection. (Photo provided by Johanna Kidd)

This Queen Bee Is White

It's a stunning piece of work.

It's a three-dimensional paper sculpture of a queen bee.

Noted artist Marilyn Judson (right) of Davis created the paper sculpture (below) now on display in the "Sticky Business: Art of the Honey Bee" show that runs through Dec. 23 at the Pence Gallery, 212 D St., Davis. Gallery hours are Tuesdays through Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Judson has been around "bugs" all her life. Her husband, Charles Judson, is an emeritus professor of the UC Davis Department of Entomology.

Judson specializes in paper sculpture, calligraphy and watercolors. She has displayed her work throughout the area and worked in partnership with Davis artist Donna Billick in creating area murals.

She is one of 11 artists showing their work, which includes paintings, monoprints, sculpture and photographs.

The gist of the show is to incorporate "themes of environmental conservation with beautiful and thought-provoking fine art on the subject of the honey bee,” says curator Christopher Beer.

“The honey bee has provided sweetness to life that has benefited culture since the dawn of civilization.  Now, scientists and farmers are eager to identify causes of the current decline of the honey bee population due to colony collapse disorder.”

Beer worked with regional artists and researchers from UC Davis “to investigate this unique insect’s relationship to the Valley and our way of life.”

And to point out the plight of the honey bee.

Queen Bee

'QUEEN BEE' is a paper sculpture by talented artist Marilyn Judson of Davis. This is a three-dimensional art piece now on display in the Pence Gallery, Davis. The background of this photo was darkened in Photoshop for contrast purposes.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Analyze This!

A chimpanzee holds a monarch butterfly in a ceramic art work titled “Darwin.”  

Human hands cradle insects and assorted objects in a ceramic work titled “Analyze This.”

Those are just two of the art works featured in a juried show under way at  the Pence Gallery, 212 D St., Davis. The show, sponsored by the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program and the Pence Gallery,  explores the connection between art and science. The show opened March 10 and runs through April 12. 

You can view the art, listen to music and talk to artists at the free public reception set for 7 to 9 p.m., Friday, March 13 at the gallery. The art is amazing,  said Art/Science Fusion Program co-director Diane Ullman, associate dean undergraduate academic programs of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and professor of entomology at the UC Davis Department of Entomology. 

Among the work exhibited in the show is that of Catherine Chalmers, one of the distinguished series of speakers in the Consilience of Art and Science Colloquium, sponsored by Art/Science Fusion, which is part of the Science and Society Program, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. 

The “Darwin” piece is the work of ceramic artist by Nuala Creed of Petaluma. Of her art Creed says: “As he sits holding butterflies and the jawbone of an animal, the chimp gazes directly at the viewer. His offering to us, his next of kin, is his curiosity of the natural world. His intelligence is shown by his inquisitiveness. His name is Darwin, in honor of Charles Darwin, whose work helped us realize that we humans are not above nature, but are of nature. The chimp may be asking us to observe our natural world, to be the scientists that may help save our planet.” 

 

The “Analzye This” piece is by Ann Savageau, associate professor of design at UC Davis.  Savageau  explains: “This is Art analyzing Science analyzing Nature.  It makes visible the analytical methodology at the heart of the scientific endeavor. We take our measuring, probing, dissecting, and classifying for granted, as "the way things are".  We forget that these are recent cultural constructs. “   

Another ceramic work, “Twins,” by Marnia Johnston of San Mateo, appears to be twin insects. Johnston says of it: “Much of my work looks at the physiology, psychology and culture surrounding humans and our relationships with other organisms. I research the direct and indirect impact we have on them based on our unconscious environmental decisions. ‘Twins’ suggests the effects of pseudo-hormones produced by industry waste, topical steroids from male hair products, and other cosmetic products, on the physiology of organisms in our environment."

And it’s all a part of the Consilience of Art and Science Colloquium. What is consilience, you ask? William Whewell (1794-1866), who coined the term in 1840, described it as the linking together of facts and principles from different disciplines to form a broad, comprehensive theory that spans the realms of knowledge. 

 

E. O. Wilson brought consilience into the modern lexicon with his highly acclaimed book, Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge.

 

Darwin

DARWIN--This piece at the Pence Gallery, Davis, is the work of ceramic artist Nuala Creed of Petaluma. Of her art she says: “As he sits holding butterflies and the jawbone of an animal, the chimp gazes directly at the viewer. His offering to us, his next of kin, is his curiosity of the natural world. His intelligence is shown by his inquisitiveness. His name is Darwin, in honor of Charles Darwin, whose work helped us realize that we humans are not above nature, but are of nature. The chimp may be asking us to observe our natural world, to be the scientists that may help save our planet.” (Photo courtesy of Diane Ullman)

Analyze This

ANALYZE THIS--The piece at the Pence Gallery, Davis, is by Ann Savageau, associate professor of design at UC Davis. She explains: “This is Art analyzing Science analyzing Nature. It makes visible the analytical methodology at the heart of the scientific endeavor. We take our measuring, probing, dissecting, and classifying for granted, as "the way things are". We forget that these are recent cultural constructs." (Photo Courtesy of Diane Ullman)

Art Show: A Fusion of Art and Science

If you like to combine art with science, here you go.

 

In keeping with the theme, “The Consilience of Art And Science," the Pence Gallery and the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program are sponsoring a juried exhibition, open to all artists and scientists.

 

The  deadline to submit a CD and entry information is Feb. 20. The Pence Gallery, located at 212 D St., Davis, will exhibit the selected work March 10-April 12.

 

The Consilience of Art and Science is a centennial colloquium sponsored by the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion experimental learning program.

 

The goals of the Pence Gallery exhibitions are three-fold, said Art/Science Fusion co-director Diane Ullman, associate dean of Undergraduate Academic Programs, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and professor of entomology.

 

The goals are: 
1. To show create work that explores the intersection between art and science
2. To foster communication between the arts and sciences
3. To spark new ways of viewing the world and ourselves.

You can find more information--the rules and an entry form--here. For additional information, contact  Natalie Nelson, director of the Pence Gallery, at (530) 758-3370 or at penceartdirector@sbcglobal.net.

 

 E. O. Wilson’s highly acclaimed book, “Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge,” helped inspire the colloquium, Ullman said. His quote, "Neither science nor the arts can be complete without combining their separate strengths," provides the "intellectual foundation" for the Art/Science Fusion Program at UC Davis, the unifying theme for the UC Davis Centennial Colloquium and the 2009 juried exhibition at the Pence Gallery.

One has only to look at photographs of insects to realize  that "Neither science nor the arts can be complete without combining their separate strengths."

Red Dragonfly

RED DRAGONFLY--UC Davis entomologist Michael Parrella submitted this photograph in the Insect Salon juried photography show at the Entomological Society of America's 56th annual meeting, held last November in Reno. Photographers from around the world entered the competition. Parrella is an associate dean of agricultural sciences at the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, and professor of entomology and environmental horticulture at UC Davis. (Photo by Michael Parrella)

Silver Wings

SILVER WINGS--UC Davis entomologist Michael Parrella submitted this striking photo of a silver-winged dragonfly in the Insect Salon juried photography show at the Entomological Society of America's 56th annual meeting, held last November in Reno. Parrella and UC Davis entomologist Frank Zalom were named ESA Fellows at the meeting. (Photo by Michael Parrella)

Cuckoo Bee

CUCKOO BEE--This photo of a cuckoo bee, taken by Kathy Keatley Garvey of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, was accepted into the international Insect Salon juried show and exhibited at the Entomological Society of America's 56th annual meeting in Reno. She titled it: "Watch Out Below!"