2024 Faculty - Rohini Devasher

Brief About the Session :

Arts and Astronomy

Astronomy is unique by virtue of being the oldest of the observational sciences. It is also one of the few scientific fields where there will always be a need for the amateur because the sky is immense and there are simply not enough people looking at the stars. Let me begin by telling you what this is not! This is not Astronomy 101; this is a journey through ways of seeing, observing, and thinking about astronomy, art, storytelling, and our place in the universe. The workshop will begin in the hours between June 1st and June 2nd with an overnight observation at the Manesar Astro Facility in collaboration with astrophotographer and amateur astronomer Ajay Talwar.

On June 2nd, the Moon will be 24 days old and will be 25% lit in its waning phase. Saturn will rise at 2 am, along with its magnificent, majestic rings. Mars follows at about 3:30 am. The outermost planet, blue Neptune, will also be observable before dawn. In the early morning, we will also look for some beautiful double stars in the sky. The overnight observation will be the catalyst for the work we do through the following week, where we will think about the frames - historical, artistic, scientific, and speculative - by which categories such as observation, object, site, and the observer can be understood. And we will see the ways in which science and art can be deeply speculative and creative. At the end of the 5 days, we will hopefully emerge with a better understanding of the complexities of observational astronomy, and the ways in which ‘seeing’ is strange, wondrous, and more ambiguous than one might imagine. In the words of Historian of Science Lorraine Daston, we will “observe observation in its own spirit: open to possibilities for new knowledge in the most unexpected places”.

Career :