In 1969, the vision of a handful of professors at California Institute of Technology resulted in an initiative to bring artists and scientists together to “see what happens.” The experiment embodied insurgent notions of that era—ideas that would once again become manifest a generation later in the young 21st century’s art-science fusion. Out of this venture came hints of new visual vocabularies and ways of making, as well as an awareness of fault lines between the two cultures. To one young student who found his way into it, the Caltech experience became a transforming moment.

Issue Section:
Artist’s Article
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©2017 ISAST
2017
ISAST

Supplementary data

NNON Computer- generated Film, 1970

I filmed NNON at the old Booth Computing Center at Caltech, 1970. At the time I was employed at Caltech's Astro-Electronics lab, drafting computer circuits for the Mount Wilson and Palomar observatories, and involved in a Caltech EAT program inviting artists to work with scientists. (© Stephen Nowlin)

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Caltech Earthday Poster, 1970

I was invited by the Caltech Environmental Action Council (CEAC) to create a poster for the very first Earth Day, 1970, announcing CEAC’s “Teach-In on the Environment.” The influences of the 1960s – 70s Environmental and Art-Technology movements are still being unpacked by the Art-Science movement today. (© Stephen Nowlin)

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