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Astronomical Art, Algorithmic Art, and Science Fiction

Thursday, February 11th, 2010

Sands of Mars
Sands of Mars

The Capricon Science Fiction Convention opens today and runs through Sunday. I have a fairly busy schedule at the con this year. First I will be participating in the convention’s art show. I will have seven works of art in the show:

In addition to the art show, I will also be providing two presentations for the convention: Algorithmic Art: Where Art Meets Math and The Art of Astronomy.

Algorithmic Art: Where Art Meets Math gives a history of algorithmic art, discusses some of the concepts and takes a look at some of the software tools available today to those interested in algorithmic art.

The Art of Astronomy is a straight forward history of astronomical art which also includes a discussion of how I have created some of my astronomical art as well as providing an overview of how anyone can use freely available graphics software to work with the raw image data available online from the various NASA robotic missions.

In addition to my two presentations, I will also be participating on the following panels.

Panel: Do You Still Believe in the Future?
Description: They say the “Golden Age of Science Fiction” is thirteen and when you’re thirteen all sorts of things are possible in the future. Now that you’ve grown up, chronologically, if nothing else, do you still view the possibilities of the future the way you did when you hit that golden age? Is it possible to retain that hope and optimism or are humans naturally cynical? With co-panelists Michael D’Ambrosio, Butch Honeck and Dermot Dobson as moderator.

Panel: Nuclear Fission or Fusion or ???: What Will Power our Future?
Description: Wind…Water…Coal…Steam…Oil. Over the centuries our fuel choices have changed as we’ve found more effective alternatives. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the most effective alternative, nuclear fission, carries a strong negative, and fusion isn’t ready for prime time. What advances will fuel sources see in the next 50 years? 100 years? Will we ever run out of fuel? With co-panelists Jim Landis, Pat Nuccio, Isabel Schechter, and myself as moderator.

Panel: ISDC: The International Space Development Conference
Description: The International Space Development Conferences is coming to Chicago on Memorial Day weekend this year. Come learn what this professional conference has to offer and learn how you can attend at a discount. With co-panelists Raymond Cyrus and Tom Veal and myself as moderator.

Panel: Manned visit to Mars: Round Table Discussion
Description: Is it worth sending a man to Mars as opposed to unmanned probes? With co-panelists Brother Guy Consolmagno and Bill Thomasson as moderator.

See you at the con.

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It’s All A Conspiracy

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

Conspiracy Crowd
Are You In On It?

Yes they are all in it together. In this case they is that unknown force which has worked to arrange it so that everything that I am even remotely interested in doing is happening on the same weekend in February.

It all started with the Capricon Science Fiction Convention. I will be participating in their art show, deliver two presentations on art, and be a panelist on a number of panels. Capricon is Feb 11-14.

Along comes the Northwest Cultural Council and offers a seminar on State Of The Art Giclee Reproductions. I would love to attend but can’t because it is that same Saturday.

I was then asked if I could do a presentation for the Northern Illinois Rocketry Association at their mini-conference scheduled for the same Saturday. Would have loved to both present and attend but alas no can do.

I was also asked to speak to a school group on that Friday about careers in the aerospace, astronomical, and planetary science fields. Can’t make that one either.

Most of all I would have loved to attend the College Art Association Annual Conference being held in Chicago this year! If it wasn’t for my obligations to Capricon, I would be at this conference.

There was something else as well - I forget what it was but it was the same weekend so that was dismissed.

And oh, I forgot to mention that my older son’s birthday is, yep you guessed it, that Friday!

On the bright side - nothing else has showed up on my radar screen for the other 24 days of the month.

Sadly this seems to be all to typical for me. I distinctly remember after returning from my honeymoon with my wife - we were discussing vacation plans for the next year. Out of 52 weekends I had only one weekend blocked out - that to attend the International Space Development Conference. My wife wanted us to go to California to celebrate her father’s 60th birthday. You guessed it - out of 52 possible weekends her father’s birthday was the same weekend as the conference I was obligated to attend. So for our first vacation post-honeymoon, we spent it a few thousand miles apart.

Being powerless to stop this evil conspiracy, I’ll just shrug it off and do my best to enjoy all those other free weekends.

Jim

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Space Art and Astronomical Art for Mensans

Tuesday, November 10th, 2009

Mensa audience at costume parade
An audience of Mensans at the costume parade

Last Halloween weekend I attended the Chicago regional Mensa gathering known as HalloweeM. Held at the Sheraton Chicago Northwest in Arlington Heights, this four day event brings together Mensans and features presentations, games, food, drink, and a costume parade.

This was the second HalloweeM that I’ve attended as a speaker. At last year’s HalloweeM I gave two presentations. One was my The Universe According to Monty Python presentation which deals with a range of astronomical and cosmological topics. My other presentation was Algorithmic Art: Where Art Meets Math - a personal favorite of mine as it deals with a topic that fascinates me. You can read more about my exploits at that HalloweeM at Mensa, Algorithmic Art, and Monty Python.

My original schedule called for me to speak Friday night. My presentation that evening was Art And The Exploration of Space which is a history of the evolution of space art and the ways in which art has been used with respect to space exploration.

Later that evening while thoroughly enjoying the ample quantities of food and drink served up to the attendees, I was approached and informed that one of the speakers for Saturday had to cancel and would I be interested in coming back and giving another presentation. I promptly said yes and then proceeded to scratch my head trying to decide which talk to give. I did not want to repeat either of the presentations that I had given last year. I finally decided on giving one of my newer presentations - The Art of Astronomy, a talk I had recently given at the Hinsdale Public Library. This presentation deals with astronomical art as opposed to space art. Think of astronomical art as being about nature and space art as being about the human exploration of space.

In addition to my presentations, and lots of eating and drinking, I also attended a few other programs. The most interesting, and which I unfortunately missed the first half of, was That We May Never Forget: Chronicling the Life and Experiences of a Child Holocaust Survivor by Paul Argiewicz, a survivor of the Nazi concentration camps. His was a moving story. One thing that particularly struck me was his deep love of the United States. I feel that this man has a far greater appreciation of our country than many of our native born citizens who have known no other way of life.

Ad Astra, Jim

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Space Art for Mensa

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Digital Painting of a Stellar Atmosphere
Digital Painting Study of a Stellar Atmosphere

This Friday October 30 I’ll be speaking at the Chicago regional Mensa gathering known as HalloweeM. My topic for the evening will be Art And The Exploration of Space. I start off by providing a history of space art and how space art has evolved over time. Perhaps more than any other art form space art has truly been influenced by technology beginning with the invention of the telescope.

The bulk of my presentation deals with the different ways in which art can be used to convey information and emotion. A fair portion of the art I use is art that was created as a part of the NASA Art Program. Last year an excellent book on the subject was released. You may want to read my book review NASA/ART: 50 Years of Exploration.

This four day gathering of mensans is being held at the Sheraton Chicago Northwest in Arlington Heights. To learn more about the Mensa HalloweeM, visit HalloweeM 34: Chicago-area Mensa legendary gathering. You can also read a news release I placed on my web site: Digital Artist Jim Plaxco and Space Art Featured at Regional Mensa Gathering

The Illustration

To illustrate this post I’ve used a small digital painting I recently did of a stellar atmosphere. This was a study of a technique that I’ve been working on. The software I used was Adobe Photoshop. My focus was on painting the star’s limb. My next step will be to focus on the star’s main surface. If I am satisfied with the results, I will proceed to do a full size version.

Ad Astra, Jim

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Art And The Exploration of Space Lecture

Thursday, October 8th, 2009

Apollo LEM from Astronaut Glory digital painting
Apollo Lunar Module from Astronaut Glory digital painting

Tomorrow night, Friday October 9, I’ll be giving my presentation Art And The Exploration of Space at a meeting of the Skokie Valley Astronomers. Space art is definitely a subject I enjoy talking about as it was space art that got me interested in art and in part space exploration. With respect to space exploration, it was the combination of space art, science fiction, and space exploration itself that got me interested in space exploration to the extent that I became actively involved in promoting both robotic and human space exploration.

For details about the Art And The Exploration of Space program, see the news release Space Art at the Ryerson Conservation Area

The Illustration

To illustrate this post I used a section of one of my digital painting tributes to the Apollo missions. The section shows the Apollo Lunar Module. For details about this digital painting see
Astronaut Glory I Space Art Print

Ad Astra, Jim

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Space Art and Astronomy Day

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

Astronomy Day at Harper College
Map for Astronomy Day at Harper College

Saturday May 2, the Northwest Suburban Astronomers will be hosting an evening of astronomical activities at Harper College in Palatine IL. Some of what visitors can expect includes:

  • Telescopes on Display
  • Access to the Campus Observatory
  • Astronomy Lectures
  • Displays and Photographs
  • Projects for Children

I will be one of the lecturers and I’ll be talking about space art. The title of my presentation is Art and the Exploration of Space. I provided the following description of my talk to the NSA:

Art has been used as a means of visualizing alien worlds and illustrating science fiction magazines. The arrival of the space age provided art with a new purpose: the visualization of the human exploration of space. This presentation provides a historical overview of the evolution of space art and the means by which art has been used to capture and portray humanity’s first steps into the space frontier.

This is an expanded version of a talk I originally gave in 2008 at the International Space Development Conference in Washington D.C.

Note that this Astronomy Day event will be held rain or shine. Most of the activities are inside. If the sky is clear, telescopes will be available for viewing a variety of celestial objects. The event is free and suitable for both adults and children.

Astronomy Day Details
Saturday May 2, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Programs begin on the hour at 6:00, 7:00, and 8:00
The Planetarium Dome admission requires a free ticket available at the information desk

WHERE:
William Rainey Harper College, Building Z
Algonquin Road Entrance, Parking Lots 2 & 3
Palatine, IL

Ad Astra, Jim

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Capricon Science Fiction Convention

Thursday, February 19th, 2009

Fate of the Sister Star Supernovax
Fate of the Sister Star

Looks like the folks running the Capricon Science Fiction Convention are keen to keep me busy this year. Capricon, which begins today and runs through Sunday, is one of three sciene fiction conventions held each year in the Chicago area. I’ve been a participant in “con” programming since the early 90’s.

Following is the list of panels that I’ll be on. The (M) identifies the person who will be serving as the panel’s moderator.

Web Design for Fans
Tired of the same old web designs? Want your website to impress family and friends without overpowering them with bells and whistles? Come listen to some experts in the effective design of a fannish website. Jim Plaxco (M), Jason Robertson, Kevin Spencer.
Digital Art
Digital art is art created with a computer, from models or references created by the artist. The term is usually applied to works created entirely with a computer. The panel will cover both 2D and 3D digital art and its many applications. Artists  Mike Cole (M), Rudy Jakupovic, Jim Plaxco.
Technology: Mean or Green
Is technology inherently detrimental to the environment? Or can technology lead us away from pollution and destruction of the biosphere? Christian McGuire, Jim Plaxco (M), Jim Rittenhouse.
Astronomy Workshop
The Universe around us has gotten a lot stranger and more varied since you took that intro to astronomy class so many years ago. Come and learn the latest in astronomical knowledge from Plutoids to the size of the Milky Way (now 35% larger!) in this workshop geared to teaching and understanding practical astronomy. Bill Higgins, Jim Plaxco (M), Henry Spencer.
Space Camp
If you want to know what it is like to train to be an astronaut, Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama is for you. Former campers tell stories of the camp and try to let you know why Space Camp is for you (and why it is just so much better than that Science Camp down the road). Joshua Jacobson, David Kahn, Jamie Kahn, Jim Plaxco (M), Grant Shillington.

In addition to the programming, I’ll also be participating in the art show.  The pictures that I am planning on bringing to the art show are:

Looks to be a fun weekend.

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The 2008 Windycon Science Fiction Convention

Thursday, November 13th, 2008
Windycon Astronaut
See You At Windycon

This weekend I’ll be battling my way around the Windycon Science Fiction convention. Windycon, one of the country’s larger science fiction conventions, opens Friday Nov 14 and continues through Sunday Nov 16. The theme for this the 35th Windycon is military science fiction and features topics like “Child Soldiers“, “Evolving War“, “Strategy, Tactics, Logistics: What Are They and Why Do I Need to Know?“, and “Mistakes That Go Boom” - to name just a very few. This year the convention will be held at the brand new Westin Lombard - Yorktown Center in Lombard, IL.

Following is my Windycon programming schedule.

Digital Art: Artist Meets Technology Cypress B, Friday 6:00pm:
The panelists will discuss the whats and whys of digital art. The emphasis will be on science fiction digital art: otherworldly planetscapes, three-dimensional aliens, and colors you never saw under our yellow sun. In addition to myself, the other panelists are David Mattingly, Windycon’s Artist Guest of Honor, and science fiction author Roland Green.
Interstellar Warfare: How exactly do you do it Walnut, Saturday 2:00pm:
This panel’s description reads: Interstellar warfare is the blood and bones of military SF, but how do you run a war in space? Given the physical limits of communication, how does a general direct a war? And what are we fighting over anyway? Planets? Wormholes? The Horsehead Nebulae? Join our panelists as they discuss this basic topic. At last year’s Windycon I participated in a panel that discussed the subject of planetary and interstellar governments and the issues that such a system would face. So you could say that last year’s panel was on how to bureaucratize the galaxy and this year’s panel is on how to destroy it. The other panelists are M. D’Ambrosio, R. Garfinkle, J.L. Nye, and M. Shepherd-Moscoe.
Selling Space With Space Art Ballroom AB, Sunday Noon:
The actual title of my presentation is “Using Art to Promote Space Exploration“. My talk includes an overview of the history of space art and how space art has been used, and can continue to be used, to promote space exploration. I developed this presentation specifically for the International Space Development Conference which was held in Washington DC earlier this year.

If you’re curious, you can read about my participation in Windycon 2007 and Windycon 2006.

See you at Windycon. Jim

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Mensa, Algorithmic Art, and Monty Python

Friday, October 31st, 2008
Making Tracks Abstract Digital Art
Making Tracks Abstract

Pardon my absence friends but much has been going on that has kept me distracted from writing for my blog. This last weekend saw me attending the Chicago regional Mensa gathering known as HalloweeM. This four day conference/gathering was held at the Sheraton Chicago Northwest in Arlington Heights.

I gave two presentations at the conference, both in the main ballroom so I had a good audience for each. Friday night I gave my The Universe According to Monty Python presentation wherein I spend an hour talking about two minutes worth of song lyrics from The Galaxy Song. I got a fair number of questions from the audience as the subject matter ranges from the speed of the Earth’s rotation to the question of whether or not our universe is just one of many in the multiverse.

Saturday morning I delivered a presentation titled Algorithmic Art: Where Art Meets Math. This was the maiden voyage for this presentation and fortunately it went far better than the maiden voyage of the Titanic. I opened the presentation with a video produced by the Electric Sheep project which is a wonderful example of evolutionary art. Following the video, I began my talk with a discussion of non-representational art - particularly abstract expressionism, conceptualism, and neo-conceptualism. Using this as a foundation, I proceeded to make the case that algorithmic art is a valid art form. I continued with an examination of algorithmic art in its many guises - fractal art, generative art, evolutionary art, etc. I also provided a look at a number of the pioneers in the field - including Laposky and his oscillons, Frieder Nake, A. Michael Noll, and Jean-Pierre Hébert, to name a few.

What surprised me most was that I got more questions during this presentation than I did during my Monty Python talk. Given the number of questions from the audience, my presentation wound up running long. Fortunately mine was the last program before the lunch break so not only was I able to complete my talk, I was also able to provide some live demonstrations of algorithmic art using the Processing platform.

So what did I like best about the conference you ask? Well besides meeting a number of very interesting people, the highlight would have to be the Pretentious Drinking event Saturday night which involved a ballroom and a line of tables that stretched from one wall to the other upon which were placed side by side innumerable bottles of different liqueurs all free for the sampling. And along the short wall was a well stocked dessert bar - a chocoholics paradise. While there I ran into Cynthia, the lady in charge of programming. We had a very nice chat and I’m very pleased to report that I’ve been invited back to next year’s gathering of Chicago area Mensans.

About the Image
Making Tracks is an abstract piece I created for this post and is meant to suggest a sphere moving with great speed - hence the name. The original is sized to serve as a desktop wallpaper.

So in closing, Happy Halloween everyone. Jim.

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Astronomy Day

Sunday, May 11th, 2008
Astronomy Day
Astronomy Day

Yesterday was Astronomy Day. I had been asked to speak at the Astronomy Day event at Harper College in Palatine IL. My presentation was The Universe According to Monty Python in which I spend an hour explaining the lyrics of the two minute long Galaxy Song which was featured in the movie The Meaning of Life.

I must say that for a bunch of comedians they did a pretty good job of getting their astronomy right but they did have professional help. During the course of my talk lots of big numbers get thrown around. As a rule the best laugh comes with my follow up to the line about the sun being the source of all our power where I segue into an explanation of nucleosynthesis. Whereas Carl Sagan looked at the situation through rose colored glasses when he said that we’re all made of “starstuff”, I level with the audience and tell them the truth: that we’re all nothing more than nuclear waste. Folks really seem to like hearing this.

Also, as a rule, people do not raise questions about the astronomical aspects of my talk but do ask questions when the subject turns to cosmology and relativity. To me this is only natural as those concepts are more alien to our everyday experiences and touch on the very nature of the universe.

For contrast, this Tuesday I’ll be giving a talk to all the third graders at a local grade school. My talk is The Solar System in 3D and the kids get to wear geeky red-blue anaglyph glasses. Believe it or not, third graders are a great audience. They are very curious and not at all afraid to ask questions.

Ad Astra, Jim

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