Art and Science
This article is written by Johnathan Miller, a newly graduates in graphic arts as he wants to share his experience with other students:
“As a student in arts, I never think that I would take computer, mathematics, or science in college. Even if I do, I do not think I would do well in these classes because I love arts and do not care about science or computer. The current education system divides college students into separate categories depending on what they study and it is difficult for a student in arts to take science class or vice versa.
This “categorization” forces the separation between the sciences and the arts. Students in arts rarely associate with students in science. We study in different buildings, go to different classes, have different teachers, and arts students rarely go out with science students. We may have coffee with philosophy students, talk with drama students, go out with literature students, or make friends with sociology students but science is another world. If I sit next to a science or software students, I think I sit next to people from another planet as there is nothing common among us. We often talk about beauty and passion when they talk about logic and calculation and that is why most students in arts are happy in their own world and do not like to venture out. However in my third year, I feel like I am missing something in my life.
What has happened was I read a book by Kimberle Crenshaw, a famous sociologist where she argued that college should offer a “convergent intersectionality” as a new way to form a highly intellectual society. She analyzed the ways in which race, class, and gender collide and how it changed individuals and society. She wrote that when these things “intersect” it creates a collective knowledge, where each one becoming richer, more inform through its intersections with the others. The best place for these things to happen is in college where students can experience the diversity of fields and learn from one another. She wrote: “Imagine an environment where the arts, humanities, sciences and technology converged. Perhaps an entirely different type of learning would rise.”
Another book that I read is the Biography of Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple Computer. He was a single person that changes the entire world through his own vision. He was an artist who loves calligraphy (Not many people knew that he is the creator of all the beautiful fonts in the personal computer) but he also loves technology and through technology that he changed the world. He had the passion of an artist, the thinking of a philosopher, the calculation of a business person and the knowledge of a technologist. He did not finish college but many college students admired him. He did not teach but what he said influence the whole generation of students all over the world. When Bill Gates said that American colleges must teach computer to all students, Jobs disagreed and said that college students must learn arts to enrich themselves because the world needs more beautiful things. When Bill Gates made billion dollars, Jobs only took $1 dollar a year salary as he said “When you die, you cannot take those with you to your grave.” When he was asked why he did not care about getting rich, he said: “We all going to die and the best way I know to avoid the thinking that you have something to lose is you are already naked. You come to this world naked and you leave this world naked so there is no reason NOT to follow your heart. Just do what you love and be happy.”
Because of these people and their ideas I wanted to broaden my knowledge with technology as I hoped it would provide me something that I may miss in my life. I took the “Introduction to Information Technology” reluctantly and told myself if I did not do well I will drop it and forget about technology but this course changed me completely. Through this course, I developed an understanding of technology and how it changed the world. There were no mathematics or programming requirements in this course as I learned about globalization, the “Flat world”, and the interconnected among countries, the issues of environments, and the evolution of society from Agricultural Age to Industrial Age and to Information Age etc. I felt like I walked into a beautiful garden full of strange flowers and butterflies where I was shocked about how technology changes everything.
Perhaps the best part about this class was I learned how to collaborate with other classmates. This is the first time I really understand teamwork. In arts, you work alone. You create whatever you feel and mostly in your own. You do not work with other artists to create a painting or music. In this class, I had to work with others and this helped me to change my attitude about science students. We talked about our differences, our disagreements then we found that there was no difference between us. There was no difference between arts and science and we were on a journey to the next generation of “intersectionality” where different ideas, methods, practices, and interests co-exist in cooperative partnerships. Actually, we were not in disagreement or dividing but rather, we were working toward collaboration between students of all fields of study to yield the best collective result. We were using the knowledge of one field to improve others. We were improving our own knowledge and combined them into our own intellectual. After this class, I told professor Vu that we need to create more opportunities for students from the arts and the sciences to work together. He liked my idea and suggested that I look into another class called “Graphic Arts” using computer to draw pictures and create arts using technology tools.
I was the first arts student who took this class which was full of computer students. However I was not afraid because I knew that even I did not have programming skills but these people did not know much about painting and graphic design either but if we work together, I can learn from them and they can learn from me. I learned how to program in Java and Python in few weeks. Even in my dream I would never believe that I could do that. I even created my own website with a lot of beautiful pictures that I created and it got attention of a Facebook manager. She called me and suggested that I helped design several graphic arts for the company. By the time I graduated, I got a job offer from Facebook as a graphic artist. Now you know how a fine arts student, specializes in painting and colors could get a job at a software company.
The value of a college education is not entirely in the knowledge that you learn on your field but it could be what you learn in other fields too. That knowledge is out there and all you have to do is to give it a try. The “real value” of a college education is in the connections made between different types of thinking, understanding, and communication. It is really about breaking down the divisions between groups, schools, departments and fields of study by exchanging ideas and opening up a new way to extend the intellectual environment of the university. “Intersectionality” is important because it promotes the value of synthesis, it encourages students to open their minds and exploring new frontiers. Traditional education categorizes students into different groups, different fields of study and separate our knowledge into special categories but today this concept is obsolete. Who said if you study literature in high school you cannot study science in college? Who determine your future by force you into a category that you must comply? We must change it as today everything is interconnected. College must be open for anyone who want to learn without any restriction. College must be the place where arts and science and every other fields can merge into new fields, new areas and this synthesis is where creativity happens, where innovation happens and it is the future of higher education.
I suggest that every college student, no matter what field that you study, what areas that you are interested in, should take a few courses in information technology. We are living in the Information Age and in this age, everything is connected and technology makes new things happen. You may find that your skills and your talents will be needed by industry that you never even think of.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
