Features ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
PAGE 6 • THURSDAY, JANUARY 24, 2013
TECHNICIAN
Gregg displays art for science’s sake Andrea M. Danchi
Farfetched is an exhibit of some of the highly-creative and thought-provoking ideas Whether someone is a sci- that scientists have conceived entist, an artist or even just over the years. The entire a little crazy, the two new show is inspired by British exhibits in the Gregg Mu- mathematician Alfred North seum of Art and Design aim Whitehead’s statement, “Evto address the entire campus ery really new idea looks community and highlight the crazy at first.” University’s strengths. One of the exhibitions, Director Roger Manley by f lorist Richard Brown, wanted these two new ex- is a collection of miniature hibits to be more science- f lying contraptions, space based than normal, while crafts and military vesstill maintaining the defini- sels made from floral foam. tion of art and design. The These small sculptures are goal of the shows is to draw surprisingly sturdy and have in students from other parts inspired the notion of buildof the campus. ing ships in outer space with “Given the type of univer- compact, durable foam-like sity that N.C. State is,” Man- materials, instead of designley said, “there’s this huge ing and building them here section of the university, the on earth to endure the force technological aspect, that has of exiting and reentering the really never been represented atmosphere. in the museum.” Another exhibit is the work These two shows, Far- of a scientist who conceived fetched: Mad Science, Fringe the concept of genetically Architecture and Visionary modifying seeds to encode Engineering; and Huma- them to grow into a full-scale nature: Photographs of the house. Natural World by Peter Goin, An exhibit that visitors can are the last experience exhibitions for t he min the museselves is a raum’s current dionic heallocation in ing machine Talley before c a l led t he they move to Purr Genthe Chancelerator. It was lor’s old resideveloped dence. by Duncan T he muLaurie, a deseum is taksigner who ing this opbelieved that Roger Manley, director of Gregg Museum portunity to a cat purring demonstrate was the haptheir broad new focus to all piest sound in the universe. of State, something the new The machine simulates that shows were designed for. experience for a human being Staff Writer
“...follow any science out far enough you end up in an area of faith and belief and creativity.”
UNIVERSITYAPARTMENTS
RALEIGH
JOANNAH IRVIN/TECHNICIAN
Graham Dean, a sophomore in political science, examines an art piece at the Gregg Museum opening of the Mad Science, Fringe Architecture and Visionary Engineering collection on Jan. 17. “I came because I am on the board and I wanted to see the collection,” Dean said. The collection will be on display in Talley Student Center until May.
and is supposed to make him or her more optimistic about achieving their life goals. Many of these scientists and artists were criticized for their creative, before-theirtime thinking, and some of them still are. Manley thinks this is because we have severed most bonds between art and science in our culture. People who try to mix them are often considered foolish. “If you follow any science out far enough, you end up in an area of faith and belief and creativity that represents a bigger spectrum of what people are and the kind of ways that people think,” Manley said. “It’s only in the
last couple hundred years that we’ve really felt this big need to separate out artists from scientists.” The other exhibit, Humanature, is a collection of photographs created by Peter Goin that document the natural world. The goal of Goin’s photos of the environment is to show how the things people might think of as natural may be more artificial than they realize. An example that he documents is the long piles of recycled North Carolina Christmas trees that are dumped each year along the beaches. When they are covered over
amenities CHECK OUT OUR
with sand, they create the natural dunes that people love to climb. The image shows how those dunes are actually human-designed barriers to protect the roads on our coast. Sticking with the coastal theme, Goin photographed a North Carolina beach during vacation season when it was covered with tourists enjoying the beautiful, natural coastline. Next to this is his documentation of the very same beach being plowed back into place with backhoes during the winter to deal with the yearly erosion. These photographs document the realities of human
management of the environment. Regardless of his personal opinion, Goin wants the viewer to recognize that even our natural world is still being managed by us. The collection works to inform the viewer about these realities and to question his or her impact. These two exhibits are about critical thought. The creators of these shows ask that viewers to come with an open mind ready to consider and question these ideas for themselves. They also want students from all over campus to join with them as they head into a new era for the Gregg Museum.
• Computer lab with free printing • 24-hour fitness center • 24-hour study lounge • Private study rooms • Resort style pool • Basketball court • Tanning bed • Game room
WHERE DO U want to live? 3333 Melrose Club Blvd. Raleigh, NC 27603 raleighU_full v2.indd 1
TheURaleigh.com
919.719.9051 10/30/12 4:11 PM