Don't Miss the Creativity: Fusing Art with Science In Davis

PHOTO: Shih-Wen Young, shown here at the Botanists Garden in Copenhagen, Denmark, co-juried the Consilience of Art and Science exhibit at the Pence Gallery, Davis.

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By Kathy Keatley Garvey

DAVIS--In conjunction with the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program, the work of 33 artists is being showcased at the Consilience of Art and Science exhibit through Feb. 28 at the Pence Art Gallery, 212 D St., Davis.

A reception (free admission and open to the public) will take place Friday, Feb. 12 from 6 to 9 p.m.

The evening will include juror talks from 5:15 to 6:45 p.m., and an awards presentation at 7:30. This is the fourth biannual multi-media display of the artists’ work.

Sharon Bladholm, a Chicago-based sculptor and Shih-Wen Young, a Sacramento physicist and installation artist, juried the show. Bladholm will speak from 5:15 to 6 p.m. and Young from 6 to 6:45 p.m.

In her illustrated talk, Bladholm will discuss her work as an artist, which includes various scientific expeditions. She will be available to discuss her work with interested students, staff or faculty, said Diane Ullman, professor of entomology, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. Ullman and self-described “rock artist” Donna Billick of Davis co-founded and co-directed the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program.

“Sharon Bladholm has pursued her artistic vision through the steady acquisition and command of a variety of disciplines, including cast glass, bronze, and ceramic in the sculptural realm, as well as stained glass, printmaking and works on paper,” according to her website. “The recurring theme in Bladholm’s work is the interface of people with the natural world, integrating the sciences of anthropology with biology and botany from the plant world.”

Her website indicates that she has “participated on expeditions with the Field Museum, Conservation International and Andes to Amazon Biodiversity Program to the Brazilian, Venezuelan and Peruvian Amazon, documenting the life ways of the Yanomami people through her art, and exploring conservation of endangered plant and animal species in isolated communities.”

Young will speak from 6 to 6:45 p.m. about the selection of the work for the current show. He is a professor in the physics department of American River College, Sacramento.

He and his wife, a new faculty member in the UC Davis Design Department, have created art/science connections for years. For one of their major shows, “One Moment in Time,” they explored sound.

Of that art, Young writes on a web page: “Sound is a unique quality Earth possesses. Our planet wouldn’t be what it is today without sound. However, moment after moment, sound is generated, then disappears like the ocean waves crashing onto the shore and parishes without a trace. If you could see sound and capture the image, what would sound look like? We use the physics of sound propagation to calculate and visually map sound using our innovative real-time, 3D, sound visualization model.”

The show includes the work of local favorites as well as artists throughout the country. Among the local artists is Anna Davidson, who recently received her doctorate at UC Davis in the Department of Plant Sciences and is now studying for her master of fine arts degree. She organizes the UC Davis LASER (Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous) events.

The Pence Gallery is open from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays through Sundays. For further information on the show, contact the Pence Gallery at (530) 758-3370.

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