Julia_Berman DESMA 9 Event Three Post: Professor Victoria Vesna, Guest Lecture @ Monash Art & Design, Australia

Event Confirmation: Screenshot of Attendance. Personal Photograph. 

For my third event, I attended a presentation by Dr. Victoria Vesna, focusing on her Noise Aquarium and Alien Star Dust projects. As a Biology major, I have studied many different organisms, some of which are presented in the Noise Aquarium project (i.e., plankton, as studied in my Marine Biology course). Additionally, I have an interest in Astronomy, and have taken a few Astronomy courses here at UCLA. It was fascinating to be able to see what I have learned in my Biology and Astronomy courses in a new, artistic, unique light.

Noise Aquarium Project Image. Reference: photo from https://noiseaquarium.com/ar/

Watch the Plankton Move. Reference: photo from https://noiseaquarium.com/micro-creatures/.

The project Noise Aquarium is an immersive experience created by Dr. Vesna, using data of sounds from common marine organisms when they are approached by humans (e.g., plankton). This project uses the technology of augmented reality, and also includes seven marine organisms which have been scanned topographically (Vesna 1). Subsequently, a 3-dimensional model of these organisms was generated (Vesna 1). This model is available in a 3-dimensional viewing format through an application, Artvive, which can be downloaded onto a mobile device (Vesna 1). The purpose of this project is to illustrate the impacts of anthropogenic activity on marine microorganisms (i.e., plankton) (Vesna 1).

After outlining the Noise Aquarium project, Dr. Vesna continued by introducing her Alien Stardust creation. Alien Stardust is an augmented reality experience built by Dr. Vesna, which “originally premiered March 10, 2020 in Vienna at the meteorite gallery of the Natural History Museum” (Vesna 1). This project features seven meteorites, from different parts of the world. In the third image below, the meteorite from Antarctica, featured in Dr. Vesna’s project, is shown. I found this meteorite to be particularly beautiful and unique. In her presentation, Dr. Vesna also discussed how she created a Snapchat filter based on her Alien Stardust project. This is a great and creative way to expand the accessibility and knowledge of the Alien Stardust project to more individuals. 

Alien Stardust Installation at the Natural History Museum in Vienna, Austria (Image One). Reference: photo from http://alienstardust.com/installation/

Alien Stardust Installation at the Natural History Museum in Vienna, Austria (Image Two). Reference: photo from http://alienstardust.com/installation/

Meteorite from Antarctica Featured in the Alien Stardust Project. Reference: photo from https://alienstardust.com/about/

Works Cited

Brierley, Andrew S. “Plankton.” Current biology : CB vol. 27,11 (2017): R478-R483. 

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2017.02.045

Dunbar, Brian. NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), 2022, 

https://www.nasa.gov/. 

Event Confirmation: Screenshot of Attendance. 2 May 2022. 

Fox, Lyndsey et al. “Quantifying the Effect of Anthropogenic Climate Change on Calcifying 

Plankton.” Scientific reports vol. 10,1 1620. 31 Jan. 2020, doi:10.1038/s41598-020-58501-w

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “[ALIEN] STAR DUST Installation.” ALIEN STAR DUST, Victoria Vesna et al., UCLA Art Sci Collective, Natural History Museum in Vienna, Raw Science Film Festival, Gensler Architects and Harvestworks, 10 Mar. 2020, http://alienstardust.com/installation/. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Alien Stardust Installation at the Natural History Museum in Vienna, 

Austria (Image One).” [ALIEN] STAR DUST Installation, Victoria Vesna Et Al., UCLA Art Sci Collective, Natural History Museum in Vienna, Raw Science Film Festival, Gensler Architects and Harvestworks, Vienna, Austria (Photograph Published Online), 10 Mar. 2020, http://alienstardust.com/installation/. Accessed 25 May 2022. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Alien Stardust Installation at the Natural History Museum in Vienna, 

Austria (Image Two).” [ALIEN] STAR DUST Installation, Victoria Vesna Et Al., UCLA Art Sci Collective, Natural History Museum in Vienna, Raw Science Film Festival, Gensler Architects and Harvestworks, Vienna, Austria (Photograph Published Online), 10 Mar. 2020, http://alienstardust.com/installation/. Accessed 25 May 2022. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Image from Noise Aquarium Project Website.” NOISE AQUARIUM: 3D 

Audio Visual Experience of Plankton in Noise Pollution, Victoria Vesna, Artivive Application/WordPress, Online, https://noiseaquarium.com/ar/. Accessed 25 May 2022.

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Meteorite from Antarctica Featured in the Alien Stardust Project.” 

[ALIEN] STAR DUST Installation, Victoria Vesna Et Al., UCLA Art Sci Collective, Natural History Museum in Vienna, Raw Science Film Festival, Gensler Architects and Harvestworks, Vienna, Austria (Photograph Published Online), 10 Mar. 2020, https://alienstardust.com/about/. Accessed 25 May 2022. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “NOISE AQUARIUM: 3D Audio Visual Experience of Plankton in Noise 

Pollution.” NOISE AQUARIUM, Victoria Vesna, Artivive Application/WordPress, https://noiseaquarium.com/ar/. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Professor Victoria Vesna, Guest Lecture @ Monash Art & Design, 

Australia.” Monash Art & Design, Australia/University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Design and Media Arts (DESMA) Event. Professor Victoria Vesna, guest lecture @ Monash Art & Design, Australia, 2 May 2022, Virtual Event, Virtual Event. 

Vesna, Victoria. “Space + Art Lecture Series: Introductory Lecture 

and Lectures 1-6.”Space+Art Lectures: Module 9: Design and 

Media Arts (DESMA) 9 Course. Space+Art Lectures for Module 9 in the Design and Media Arts (DESMA) 9 Course at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), 18 May 2022, Los Angeles, California, https://bruinlearn.ucla.edu/courses/129896/pages/unit-9-view?module_item_id=4852552. 

Vesna, Victoria, et al. “Watch the Plankton Move.” NOISE AQUARIUM: 3D Audio Visual 

Experience of Plankton in Noise Pollution: Micro Creatures, Victoria Vesna, Artivive Application/WordPress, Online, https://noiseaquarium.com/micro-creatures/. Accessed 25 May 2022. 

Link to Works Cited (in case of formatting issues): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1en0hbhJqHznUSn0QekIN2VRlT6cILl6trpeLtTYcc4s/edit?usp=sharing