Universal Atmospheres, 2006
(art)n: Ellen Sandor, Nick Gaul, Dien Truong and Janine Fron
PHSCologram sculpture: composed of four 41" x 41" panels, supported by 47" base
Commisioned by the State of Illinois Art Art-in-Architecture Program for Public Installation at the
National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Installation Animation
(6 MB QuickTime file; please be patient for download)
Tornado
Simulation: Bob Wilhelmson and Matthew Gilmore, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Lou Wicker, National Severe Storms Lab, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Visualization: Donna Cox, Robert Patterson, Stuart Levy, Alex Betts, Matt Hall, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Supernova
Simulation: Michael Norman, University of California at San Diego; Brian O'Shea, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Visualization: Donna Cox, Lorne Leonard, Matthew Hall, Robert Patterson, Stuart Levy, Alex Betts, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Colliding Galaxies
Simulation: Brant Robertson and Lars Hernquist, Harvard University
Visualization: Donna Cox, Robert Patterson, Stuart Levy, Lorne Leonard, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Milky Way and Galactic Center Region
Visualization: Donna Cox, Robert Patterson, Stuart Levy, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Reference Imagery: David Malin, Anglo-Australian University; Mark Morris, University of California, Los Angeles; Doug Roberts, Northwestern University
PHSCologram Detail, Supernova [Northeast View]
PHSCologram Detail, Tornado [Northwest View]
We live in a world fraught with political tension and turmoil, manifested in ideological warfare for control over what may become very precious resources, including breathable air and drinkable water.
A few of the contemporary artists who have drawn attention to the environment include Robert Smithson, Andy Goldsworthy, Christo and Richard Serra, working with natural materials to create multi-sensory sculptures and photographs that remain open to sociocultural and geopolitical interpretation.
In light of global warming and recent environmental atrocities, including the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, (art)n's latest works proactively address the need for continued support in atmospheric science, as one of the variables in creating an equitable, sustainable planet for future generations. This unique series of images uses the PHSCologram process to illuminate the heightened exchange of volatile energy between the climate and the earth, simulated from recorded pre-storm weather conditions that produced a powerful tornado in Manchester, South Dakota. From atmospheric and oceanic sciences, we can learn more about the delicate balance between the movement of the earth and how this impacts our own mobility. The scientific images in the series are shown against a background of astronomy and astrophysics, comparing physical processes that occur in real time to those that occur over billions of years.
The digital sculpture was produced by (art)n director Ellen Sandor in collaboration with visualization researchers at NCSA using a technique Sandor has dubbed PHSColograms, an acronym for photography, holography, sculpture, and computer graphics. This technique has been called the "daguerreotype of virtual reality." More recently, Dr. Larry Smarr coined the term "Virtual Sculpture" with reference to (art)n's latest oeuvre.
(art)n's early work with NCSA was included in a landmark exhibition in 1987 at Fermilab National Accelerator Laboratory, curated by Martyl, the original designer of the first visual representation of the Doomsday Clock, produced in 1947 for the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. (art)n collaborated with Martyl last year on Have a Nice Day, shown at Printworks Gallery in Chicago. In 1990, (art)n collaborated with scientists to capture a simulation of an airplane flying through a thunderstorm near Socorro, New Mexico.
PHSCologram Detail, Colliding Galaxies [Southeast View]
PHSCologram Detail, Milky Way and Galactic Center Region [Southwest View]
Ansel Adams, equally important for his photographs and his commitment to environmental awareness once declared, “It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment.”
(art)n’s scientific visualizations in atmospheric science and oceanography are in part, inspired by and dedicated to Dr. Richard Sandor, heralded as “hero of the planet” by Time magazine for his activism to reduce greenhouse gasses through the creation of the Chicago Climate Exchange.
Historical visual references from The Sandor Family Collection, pictured from left to right:
The Hill and Sky - Lake George, ca. 1921, by Alfred Stieglitz, 9 3/8" x 7 3/8" Vintage gelatin silver print
Self-Portrait, Monument Valley, Utah, 1958, by Ansel Adams, 13 3/8" x 9 1/2 " Vintage gelatin silver print
Equivalent, 1931, by Alfred Stieglitz, 4 5/8" x 3 1/2 " Vintage gelatin silver print
Paul Strand noted that Alfred "Stieglitz's photographs of things and people—of sun and cloud shapes—become equivalents of a deeply critical yet affirmative inquiry into a contemporary life. They are objective and beautiful conclusions of that inquiry."
In his own words, Stieglitz eloquently explained "What is of greatest importance is to hold a moment, to record something so completely that those who see it will relive an equivalent of what has been expressed."
