November 14, 2011 – 3.00pm
Central Saint Martins
Bryam Shaw Building
2 Elthorne Road
London N19 4AG
Open only to staff and students at Central Saint Martins
Abstract:
Artists and scientists alike seek visual images of worlds both visible and invisible. They attempt to ‘read’ nature in a very similar way – drawings precede both the finished canvas and the completed scientific theory. Exploring this fascinating realm of highly speculative thought involves coming to grips with wide-ranging questions such as: Are there similarities in creativity between artists and scientists? And if so, what are they?
ARTHUR I. MILLER is emeritus professor of history and philosophy of science at University College London. He is fascinated by the nature of creative thinking and, in particular, in creativity in art (on the one hand) and science (on the other). What are the similarities, what are the differences? An experienced broadcaster, lecturer and biographer, he is noted for being able to write engagingly about complex social and intellectual dramas, weaving the personal with the scientific to produce page-turners that read like novels.
His latest book is Deciphering the Cosmic Number: The Strange Friendship of Wolfgang Pauli and Carl Jung (W.W. Norton, 2009). The paperback version is 137: Jung, Pauli, and the Pursuit of a Scientific Obsession (W.W. Norton, 2010). Among his other books are Empire of the Stars (Little Brown, 2005), which was shortlisted for the 2006 Aventis Prize for Science Books, and Einstein, Picasso (Basic Books, 2001), which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize
Presently he is writing a book with the tentative title, The Creative Revolution and also co-curating the show Art & Science: Merging Art & Science to Make a Revolutionary New Art Movement at GV Art gallery in London. For more see the e-catalogue here.