Astronomer, artist to give presentations related to ‘Starstruck’
Jacqueline Woods, “Black Sun No. 30,” 2012.
Up next in a series of talks connected with the Bates College Museum of Art exhibition Starstruck: The Fine Art of Astrophotography are presentations by a professor of astronomy from Yale and by an artist showing work in the show.
At 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 6, astronomy professor Jeffrey Kenney gives the talk Imaging the Universe, addressing how we interpret beautiful images of astronomical objects and how such images are taken.
California artist Jacqueline Woods discusses her work in an talk titled Discovering the Black Sun at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11.
Both events take place in Room 104 of the Olin Arts Center, 75 Russell St. A reception in the museum, also located in the arts center, follows each presentation. The events are free and the public is welcome.
The Bates College Museum of Art is open free to the public Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Wednesday evenings through May until 9 p.m. For directions and more information, please visit bates.edu/museum/ or call 207-786-6158.
Yale astronomer Jeffrey Kenney ’80.
A member of the Bates class of 1980, Kenney will offer a lavishly illustrated presentation that will also explore what different colors in astral imaging mean to scientists and what images teach us about the nature of things in the universe. He’ll present remarkable images of evolved and exploding stars, star-forming nebulae, and interacting galaxies and clusters.
“Because Starstruck showcases images taken at the confluence of art and science, each image has something to teach us about our universe,” says exhibition organizer Anthony Shostak, the museum’s curator of education.
“Whether it’s judging the age of a star based on its color or discerning the elements in a colorful image of a nebula, Jeff is an ideal person to give us some insight into some of what the art has to offer.”
Woods is one of nine artists invited to participate in Starstruck whose work forms a core around which the juried portion of the exhibition was built. Her cameraless photographs in the show were inspired by celestial phenomena such as eclipses, and are a response to historic photographs by Ansel Adams and Minor White.
Teachers in all levels of education find Starstruck is a perfect vehicle to explore a variety of subjects outside the classroom, including astronomy and physical science, history, geography, literature, religion, and math. Group tours are welcome by appointment: 207-786-8302.
