Scientists and Artists—Artisans Searching for New Realities

tifk background behind them move back into the field of view, and rational aesthetics,with which a scientifically founded understanding of different aspectsof art, are strived for. In artists’ circles,the opinion is often expressed that the space of artshould be a reserve of freedom where the strictcalculation of sciencehas no room. There is nothing to be said against individual declarationsof opinion-without a doubt, art can be created, aswell as enjoyed,without paying attention to theories . On the other hand, every artistis at libertyto striveforan objective analysis ofhis orher own achievementor maybe of the achievementof colleagues, in a kind of exchange of viewpoints.It is just as legitimate to inquire about the rules-which are substantialfor the creation , aswell as the beginning, of artfrom a more general point of view. The wish to understand everything that seems to be important in one’s own world is appropriate to human nature. And there is no reason why this should not applyto art. All over the world, a lot is said and written about art, but only a limited amount can be considered a useful contribution to a better understanding of singleartistic achievementsor the general phenomenon of art.Some artistsand criticsprefer to transfer their intuitive approach to literature. Thisway the fine arts are suppliedwith an abundance of written perspectives,of which some are instructiveas information about the personalitiesof the artists, as possible interpretations of the artists’ achievements, or at leastas an expression of opinion. Much more rare are the texts in which the engagementwith the artistic prob lem correspondswith the rules of scientific description,characterizedby an objectivepresentation of testable statementswith the intention of recognizing the universal validity that underlies the commitment behind the individual case. There are many magazines in the world, but onlyvery few such as Leonurdo,which dealwith the analytic side of the phenomenon. The reader will find that a remarkably large number of contributions to Leonard0 are dedicated to artthat is supported by technical means. That was not the intention of the journal’s founder, Frank Maliia. I would presume rather that it is precisely the achievementsin the intermediate field of art/ technology/science in which artists leave the beaten track and choose to take groping stepsinto the unknown. Maybe the optimum in qualityis not alwaysfound in the interaction between these fields,but surely it is here that creators have the chance to find information on those interactions that form the basis of the artistic occupation. My own opinion is that an intellectual penetration of our own creativeactivities helps extend the creative capacity of the artist. Conversely,the use of the critical sense does not have to have any restrictiveinfluence on creativefreedom . The cooperation between intellect and intuition is especiallyevident in the field of computer art. A program that enables a user to produce and control moving pictures in relation to simultaneously presented music is not developed on the basis of intuition. Solid knowledgeof human perception and aestheticimpressions is paramount. In return, when using the program, it is then possible to focus totally on intuition and to solve the aesthetic task with the help of spontaneous fantasy. Of course, a goal such as that could be reached with teamwork,with the cooperation of a programmer and an artist. However,there can be no doubt that the chance of achievingthe given intention is better when the required qualificationsof technician and artist are united in the same person. ed by electronicmeans,where both intellectand intuition are required. Apparently itwill bejust these areas of creation that will dominate in the future. It will also be preciselythese topics that Leonard0will examine in the future. So,it is these new fieldsofart, supportHERBERTW . FRANKE HonoraqEditor Puppling 40,D-8195Egling,Germany Translatedby Ute McGlan. Scientists andArtistsArtisans SearchingforNew Realities In past years I have called the attention of Leonurdoreaders to the similarities between the ideas of order in science and in art [11and to the similarities between the workingprocess of a visual artist and that of an experimental scientist [2]. Here Iwould like to continue in the same vein, linking the deeper root of these similaritiesto our awarenessof reality. Reality is meant to be the set of permanent relationshipsour mind is able to establishduring the continuous...