Chemistry World Competition 2014

Art and Chemistry

What is undoubtedly breathtaking is how a chaotically moving swarm of perfectly

organized subatomic particles can form all the life there is. It is even more mind-blowing how
these tiny charged and neutral machineries transform into a movement, a structure, a tone or a
diverse colour spectrum which gives sensation to all aspects of our actual and imagined reality.

Bursting colours which overspill, intertwine and mix with each other, awake powerful
notions in people. The same notions arise while observing the flow and colour shifting of certain
exothermal reactions, such as fireworks, which result solely from valence electron interaction.
The creativity of the world of chemistry has enabled artists to never stop looking for inspiration.
Starting with dye pigments, such as cadmium red or alizarin, the chemical basis of the essential
dyes provides numerous possibilities for their varieties. Further on, chemicals can alter the
appearance of colours of textures. Adding bleach to certain textures can affect their deterioration.
The knowledge of chemistry also plays a significant role in handling oil paints. No oil paint has
the chemical ability to mix with water-based solvents or acrylic paints. In general, they get
mixed with turpentine, since this is the most common solvent for oil mediums. Besides
turpentine, oil paints can also get mixed with mineral, non-toxic solvents. Considering the
mentioned toxicity, as well as noxious fumes produced by dissolving agents such as turpentine,
artists should be well-aware of the side-effects of using these chemicals. In addition, chemistry
plays a crucial role in preserving and restoring paintings, sculptures, archaeological and
historical sites, as well as buildings. Chemistry also helps us understand processes which lead to
deterioration of artwork or materials which various structures are made of.

The natural principles of chemistry can be compared to the principles of creating

architectural structures. Just like a kink in the structure of an unsaturated fat or phospholipid
enables the flexibility of a cell’s membrane or more space for other elements to pass, inclined,
kinked architectural elements can provide not only more space, but an overall stability of a
structure. The elegance and simplicity of molecular disposition of crystal lattices undoubtedly
resembles steel and concrete supporting skeletons of architectural assemblies. The symmetry,
repetition, and the rhythm of the subatomic world provide numerous patterns to be mimicked in
architecture. For instance, molecular orientation and disposition in space is conditioned by the
environment, whether by its polarity or a different governing factor. These principles which
apply to molecules also apply to architectural compositions. Each piece of architecture adapts its
orientation of compositional elements and the choice of materials in relation to the environment
it is positioned at. For example, as phospholipids orient their hydrophobic tails inwards in a
cell’s membrane when in touch with polar water molecules, compositional elements such as
windows get oriented differently to respect the privacy of the residents and to enable them higher
quality views.
Even the simplest snowflake crystal structure provided inspiration not only to architects
and painters, but also for the methods and the art of writing, such as the Snowflake method.
Further on, the speed and the sound of the rushed subatomic world has its pair in music.
Beethoven’s “Ninth Symphony” or Bach’s “Toccata and Fugue in D minor” remind of a long
molecular journey or a life of a chemical reaction that goes through various phases until it
reaches a finishing point. It could be said that molecules themselves experience stress,
magnificence, sorrow, or stillness in their subatomic world, all that has already been described in
the notes of musical grandmasters. No voices, no text, only an instrumental symphony of zillions
of atoms forming living and non-living forms in the Universe, creating stardust and wormholes,
volcanoes and skies. Even though composers themselves did not directly compare chemistry to
their art, the wonders of subatomic perfection are extolled in the classical music masterpieces.

We create art that has the ability of an atom to chaotically evoke a chain reaction of
emotions, but can, at the same time, exhibit perfect order. Intertwining of art and chemistry, but
all other the fields of study and creative expression as well, take part in shaping of the cosmos.
No knowledge of the world is definite and can always be further improved or more deeply
understood.

Nejra Causevic, Sarajevo 2015