Science of Art, Color and Optics to Highlight Matinee Presentation

The June meeting of the Loma Linda Cultural Arts Association (LLCAA) will feature two astounding video presentations plus an interactive audience experiment designed to challenge culturally perceived notions of color, light and taste. The meeting will be held Sunday, June 28, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Senior Center at the southeast corner of the Loma Linda Civic Center at 25541 Barton Road. The videos will explore the science of optical and color perception. According to Sharan Bennett, president of LLCAA, the topics are of great importance to visual artists since they govern the impression viewers receive from the treatment an artist employs in the creation of a work of art. “They influence the psychological and emotional meaning we distill into our paintings, drawings and photographs as few other things possibly can,” she observes. The first of the two videos will feature Professor William Lidwell of the University of Houston in a presentation titled “The Meanings of Color.” Drawing on both physical and psychological science, Professor Lidwell’s teaching challenges viewers to re-conceptualize how and why they respond to certain colors in certain ways. He reports the result of an experiment that members of the group will participate in before the film is shown in order to compare their responses to the ones Lidwell reports. The second video, “Tim’s Vermeer,” was directed by American magician and performer known as Teller of the entertainment duo Penn &Teller. It chronicles engineer and graphic designer Tim Jenison’s obsessive pursuit of the science behind the photorealistic paintings of Dutch master Johannes Vermeer. After a question arose in Jenison’s mind while he was taking a bath, he began to wonder if Vermeer had used optical devices to create his paintings. The public is invited to this Sunday matinee. Admission is free to students and LLCAA members, but everyone else will be asked for a $3 contribution. For more information, contact Sharan Bennett at 909-796-7041.