Tanta inaspettata visibilità è senza dubbio ascrivibile allo sviluppo della nanotecnologia, una disciplina nata tutto sommato di recente. Alcune date possono servire come riferimento: nel 1959 Fenyman, docente del California Institute of Technology, è il primo a suggerire un metodo per la manipolazione di atomi e molecole in modo diretto mediante macchinari di dimensioni molecolari. Il termine nanotecnologia compare invece nel 1974, all'interno dell'articolo On the basics concepts of Nanotechnology del giapponese Taniguchi, prima pubblicazione scientifica che offre una dimostrazione della fattibilità della nanotecnologia. Bisogna invece aspettare il 1981 per l'invenzione dello Scanning Tunnel Microscope, first device that allows you to observe the material atom by atom.
From 1981 to now, nanotechnology has undoubtedly made great strides. Its effects are apparent even to people with little experience of development and technological innovation, and are consolidated in many areas of industrial production, first of all on electronics. This constant drive toward miniaturization has now reached a previously unimaginable limits, to allow to operate on a nanoscale, where you can observe and count single molecules and individual atoms, and where we highlight the amazing properties of quantum physics: matter fact , at the nanometer level, has specific characteristics unusual, not found at the macro level.
The enthusiasm that accompanied the development of this area of \u200b\u200bscience is determined not only by the charm of discovering a new world, the infinitely small, but also by the fact that nanotechnology - from the point of view strictly practical - promises the possibility of obtaining a large number of benefits in return for use of a small amount of resources. It is now plain for all that nanotechnology brings to the design and marketing of devices, instruments, equipment and devices smaller, cheaper, lighter and faster, able to perform transactions and functions always more complex compared to a reduced use of raw materials and less energy consumption. To understand the level reached just take the example of the phone, an instrument that has evolved radically in recent years become without a doubt smaller, but paradoxically also smarter and faster than economic.
To understand more fully the role and scope of nanotechnology, just reflect on the fact that nature itself is based infinitely small. Writes about the prof. Fabrizio Pirri Nanoart the catalog, see the invisible: 'The nature and definition for nanotechnology is in fact a process that is defined autoaggregation, starting from individual atoms build complex nanoscale structures which then interact to give rise to phenomena that we perceive and macroscopic structures familiar to us, including life, complex systems and creating some amazing properties: plants can adjust their capacity to absorb or reflect solar radiation, structures painted like the wings of butterflies and the feathers of some tropical birds, whose color is due to the process of reflection of sunlight on particles fully transparent, insects like fireflies able to glow with a very low energy '. But not only. The basic element of life is the cell and the cell, as is known, is extraordinarily small. Fact, there are bodies made up of a single cell - an example is yeast - as well as bodies made up as a human being, from about 10,000 cells.
The aim of nanotechnology is that, if we want to copy nature in the process of construction / building blocks of life from the infinitely small that it comprises: the atoms, particles. For this reason the nanometer and nanotechnology are often held up as real 'saviors of humanity': Why study the workings of the living world, scientists are trying to solve the problems of non-living world. As written by Ottilia Saxl, in fact, 'the way in which marine organisms build their shells strong design can help in lighter and stronger automotive materials, the way in which photosynthesis occurs within a leaf can lead to discover new techniques to efficiently generate renewable energy, and how nettle implements its sting can suggest better methods of vaccination. All these ideas are leading to what are called 'disruptive solutions as excess and completely eliminate the old ways of doing something'. With the objectives of this magnitude, it is almost assumed that the nanometer and nanotechnology will become gradually more and more players e pervasivi, coprendo settori che vanno dalla meccanica all'elettronica dal tessile alla farmaceutica, dalla biologia all'ambiente e all'energetica.
Eppure, nonostante la sua pervasività, c'è un settore rilevante della conoscenza umana che sembra resistere alla nanotecnologia o comunque a ogni tentativo di miniaturizzazione, e che sembra essere stato quasi solo sfiorato dalla scoperta dell'infinitamente piccolo: sto parlando dell'arte, in particolare quello della cosiddetta 'arte alta'.
Contrariamente ai telefoni cellulari, ai computer e altri oggetti e strumenti più o meno di uso comune, infatti, le opere d'arte – sia quelle esposte nei musei di arte antica, sia quelle vendute alle fiere d'arte contemporanea - non sembrano essere state investite dalla corsa alla miniaturizzazione. Dall'antichità a oggi – fatte poche e debite eccezioni, come la miniatura o qualche eccentrico pittore che ha perduto la vista mettendosi in testa di dipingere tele estremamente piccole, e che in ogni caso non fanno che confermare la regola – la dimensione delle opere d'arte è rimasta più o meno costante, configurandosi in una medietà compresa tra gli estremi, per le grandi dimensioni, dell'arte monumentale degli antichi egizi, a quelli decisamente meno ingombranti della miniatura medievale. Sembra dunque che nell'arte le dimensioni, below a certain point of view, count and how, and that there is a very long and well established tradition of artistic expressions that can confirm this.
Why is that this supposed strength? You can invoke the terms of a theoretical, aesthetic, or simply linked to common sense? Above all, it is relevant and pertinent to mention the size of a work of art? The works fall into categories of objects of a certain size? If until now we have witnessed a series of excursions and occasional very minor in terms of artistic and aesthetic in the world of nanotechnology, or to put it in more abstract terms of the infinitely piccolo, significa forse che le opere d'arte devono avere certe caratteristiche e non altre? Sulla base di un ragionamento di questo tipo, è ipotizzabile stabilire cosa sia un'opera d'arte e cosa non lo sia prendendone letteralmente le misure?
Queste domande possono apparire ridicole o prive di alcuna portata epistemologica o pratica, eppure è attorno a interrogativi del genere che si svolge una delle teorie più interessanti e provocatorie dell'arte e dell’estetica contemporanee, la teoria normativa elaborata dal filosofo torinese Maurizio Ferraris e pubblicata in un volume dal titolo La fidanzata automatica alla fine del 2007. Cosa significa develop a normative theory of art? According to the Italian philosopher means to say that for some reason some thing - is it a pigeon or an earthquake - it can not be in any way a work of art, and what, instead, 'meets the formal requirements to be'. So, following in the footsteps of the Ferraris, we understand not only that 'it is not true that any X (subject, object, event) can become a work of art, but also that not all physical objects can aspire to the state of opera' .
To understand how the normative theory is closely related to the size of the very small universe of art and therefore we must necessarily develop alcuni punti. Partiamo dalla prima essenziale affermazione: l'arte è la classe delle opere . Secondo Ferraris, non esiste a priori una forma dello spirito, ossia l'arte, a cui corrispondono le opere. Esistono invece 'degli oggetti dotati di certe caratteristiche e non di altre che, in determinate circostanze, possono assumere lo status dell'opera d'arte (come sottotesi, non è vero che qualunque cosa può essere un'opera)'. La seconda e fondamentale affermazione si può formulare in questi termini: ‘ le opere d'arte sono prima di ogni altra cosa oggetti fisici, e oggetti di una certa taglia, né troppo grandi né troppo piccoli, né extend over too long nor too istantane'i . Not only that works of art can be identified on the basis of certain essential properties, 'the first sensitivity whose principle is the thing and the work necessarily fall under the senses. Secondly, the manipulability . Its principle is: the thing and the work at hand are essentially manageable and observable to the naked eye, or at least fitted with glasses .
Can we stop here and leave the following two items to those who wish to deepen their reading of the volume. If us to answer the questions asked earlier in terms of the normative theory of the Italian philosopher, we should admit that it is possible to consider works of art objects that can not be perceived by the senses, the first of the view. The eye always wants his share, I would say, and Ferraris not seem to have a point if you look at the history of art, whether primitive or modern. People using works of art, from ancient times until today, have not been found in the embarrassing situation and paradoxical to contemplate something that is not observable, or to hear the inaudible. As high, the Egyptian statues can be captured with a single glance whether there is few meters away, as is the smaller of painting can never be observed if the eye is close to the tiny canvas and you just shake your eyes.
To name a few more significant conteporanea linked to art, take one of the works by the artist Cris Orfescu, Romanian by birth and American by adoption. What do they have special all his works? Consider the subject or content of his paintings: it represent? It is the artist to precisely define the constant theme of their artistic expression and cross: 'I put the nanoscale universe under the eyes of the audience viewing, using a scanning electron microscope, and the nanopaesaggi nanosculture created by physical and chemical processes. Painting and digital manipulation monochrome images obtained from the microscope and printed on canvas or paper with special inks formulated to last long '. Orfescu, then, using the scanning electron microscope 'click' snapshots of the universe at the nanoscale - many elements in these dimensions, show particularly fascinating structures and forms that can evoke, from time to time, extraterrestrial landscapes, underwater or geometric structures of considerable complexity and harmonious - which then colors and large print on canvas and exhibited to the public. Although therefore the subject of the work is somehow attributable to nanotechnology - such as nanotechnology is attributable to obtain the image of the nano-world - the real end result is a 'thing' - a painting - which falls within the normative theory of Ferraris: an object - from the point of view of its formal features - quite ordinary, neither too small nor too large, undoubtedly and unquestionably manipulated directly and without any discernible effort on the part of the human eye. So, in terms of strictly physical or formal, nothing prevents the canvas from Orferscu can be considered as a work of art.
Cosa capita invece se si analizzano alcuni degli artefatti – lungi da me la tentazione di definirli a priori opere d'arte - realizzati dal sottoscritto con la complicità di un docente e di un team di ricercatori del dipartimento di fisica del Politecnico di Torino? Prendiamo alcuni casi concreti: Dimensione attuale è un artefatto realizzato nel 2007 e consiste in una 'nanolitografia' del continente africano di 300 x 280 nanometri su una piccola superficie metallica di circa 2 cm per 2. Vi state forse chiedendo che cosa vede un qualsiasi essere umano che si trovi di fronte, anche a pochi centimetri, il piccolo wafer di silicio litografato? Assolutamente nulla. Per l'occhio umano, l'opera è totally inaccessible. Not even a hawk could distinguish something. Not even enough for a magnifying glass, let alone a light microscope. The lithograph is damn Africa, infinitely small. To be able to see we have a scanning electron microscope, but even if we were so well we should arm ourselves with the infinite patience that Africa, by the proper proportions, is so small that search for an item of 300 x 280 nm on a area of \u200b\u200b2 cm 2 is much more complicated than finding a needle in a haystack. If you're wondering what sense such an object, think about the meaning that I intend to convey: the current size of Africa must be measured at the nanoscale. Although it occupies an area on the maps of all respect, Africa is invisible to most.
but passed, and consider a second artifact created in collaboration with the team of the Polytechnic of Turin: a series of micrometer fingerprints imprinted on a silicon wafer. The work, entitled Beyond the Pillars of Hercules , will symbolize the passing of a threshold, that of the naked-eye visibility and perception associated with the senses, especially the first steps of the human and particular art of the very small universe. From the point of view of the size we can talk about first steps in comparison to the size of nanometric size current , one could say that Beyond the Pillars of Hercules is a gigantic work: fingerprints are a few microns large, and overall, the walk is about 2 cm long. In any case, to the naked eye it is hard to see something in particular conditions of light you can see a series of dots forming a line snaking, but nothing more.
is only thanks to the four black and white images taken with a FESEM - exposed in the case of premium San Fedele in Milan, in addition to the work - which is possible to highlight the details: a lunar landscape that is clearly distinguishable signs of the boots left by someone, but not limited to, recognizing the pressure exerted by the weight of body on the ground: the prints are not simply 'painted' really 'impressed', they have depth.
are also, finally, the first steps of the art beyond the limits of the visible: there are works that exist but escape the eye, are denied the sight: there, the eye bulimic contemporary can not reach. Constantly bombarded by an infinite sequence of stress, in front of the eye works invisible must surrender his temporary uselessness.
We just have to make a last example, and then try to draw some conclusions. Among the artifacts recently realized there is one dedicated specifically to Maurizio Ferraris and the issues discussed above. The work is titled Artwork and consists of a sentence lithographed on a silicon wafer which reads: This is not an artwork . In other words, in this case the intent is to create a sort of contradiction or short-circuit interpretation: an object, a thing, an artifact that defines a work of art but which contains a sentence which denies what the title says. As Ferraris argues that this is a work of art only if it is directly perceptible to the senses, whether it is directly observed and manipulated, I decided to create a work that dese a bit 'of a hard time to our fellow philosopher.
With the description of Artwork concludes this quick overview made invisible in the works since 2007. What is the meaning attributed to this kind of artistic expression? It makes sense to present works that at first glance are impenetrable to the human eye? So let us just a fundamental fact: the micro or nano-scale works is not an end in itself. The intent is not reductive, to enter the Guinness Book of Records for having grossed the smaller works in the world. Instead, each work has a precise meaning, which is also explained through the dimension of the work,
If then any work, taken individually, tries to offer a new perspective on world, an interpretation of existence, it is equally true that in general one of the objectives of these works of art that is invisible to question one of the fundamental assumptions of art and aesthetics: the dictatorship of the eye. The works produced in collaboration with the Politecnico di Torino escape the view, negate direct observation, at that size, the bulimic contemporary eye, stimulated by hypertrophic growth of visual stimuli, can not in any way to get there. The eye, leading one and absolute, it becomes superfluous elements, marginal, secondary, no longer essential.
Then, create derivative works invisible mean you want to exclude the act of viewing experience artistica? Significa negare la rilevanza dei sensi nel rapporto con le opere d’arte? Non credo proprio. In primo luogo perchè questi artefatti, sebbene invisibili ad occhio nudo, non significa che non esistano. La scritta This is not an artwork è stata effettivamente incisa sulla superficie di silicio: è una traccia fisica, una cosa, e non un’idea, un concetto o l’ennesima vuota provocazione dell’arte contemporanea; inoltre, l’opera è stata concretamente realizzata all’interno di laboratori specializzati, grazie all’utilizzo di strumenti ad hoc maneggiati da ricercatori con specifiche competenze.
The Nanoart wants, instead, focus on a vision - and, more generally, a relationship with the art - not superficial but more careful and thorough, a perception that goes beyond the eye and involving predominantly the organ More than any other allows us to observe and interpret the world, the brain. The Nanoart - understood as the production of works infinitely small - you want to configure, paradoxically, as the exaltation of vision, and not its negation. Writes about art criticism Maddalena Mazzocut-Mis, 'as in the feeling of the sublime, so in the manner of use that The exhibition offers us, the collapse is necessary prior to the acquisition of a different emotional awareness related to a process for use laminated. The development of the senses in check - a view that sees nothing - and imaginative - that can not imagine anything - is the result of the ruling fruition. Scali and Goode's works that require sacrifice in order to enhance, and later in a second level, the potential use of '.
addition to undermine the dictatorship of the eye, works of art visible to the naked eye are opposed to the front of the gigantism and grandeur of contemporary art. Let me explain: today's art suffers from hypertrophy. Huge art fairs, which are home to thousands of work piled up next to each other as on the shelves of most banal and obvious hypermarket; biennial of contemporary art that spring up like mushrooms in every corner of the world and compete to invite as many artists as possible , belonging to various disciplines and currents; artists comparable to rock stars, more interested in selling their works effort to pass new messages, alternative world views, points of view. Against these trends do nothing but put more emphasis understood as the art market , debasing the cultural aspect.
Because if it is true that art is still a good business, although that is considered a safe haven and represents an important economic sector for the tradition of recognized countries like Italy and Spain, it is equally true which has less weight and importance from a cultural perspective.
NanoArt intends to propose an explicit process scaling of contemporary art: an artistic expression that waiver of gigantism, to the protagonist, all’esibizione e alla provocazione fini a se stesse, all’impoverimento dei contenuti. alle velleità del mercato, allo strapotere dei critici e delle gallerie; la nostra è un’arte che prova ad eliminare tutto il superfluo per esaltare quelle che per noi sono le caratteristiche indispensabili dell’espressione artistica: la capacità non solo di sorprendere e meravigliare, ma di far riflettere, di proporre la visione del mondo da un’angolatura diversa, di andare oltre la superficie patinata delle immagini, di suscitare sentimenti, perplessità, dubbi e delle opere sfruttando i limiti e le potenzialità dell’essere umano.
Bibliography
Ferraris, Maurizio - The girlfriend automatic, Bompiani, Milano 2007
Ferraris, Maurizio - Aesthetics rational, Raffaello Cortina Editore, Milano 1997
Raimondi, Stefano - Nanoart, see the invisible, Skira 2007
Heidegger, Martin - The origin of the work of art, New Italy, Florence, 1968
Feynman , Richard P. - Six Easy Pieces, Adelphi, Milano, 2000
Feynman, Richard P. - Plenty of room at the bottom, Pasadena, 1959
Taniguchi, Jiro - On the basics concepts of nanotchnology, Tokyo 1974
Gibson, James J. - An ecological approach to visual perception, Il Mulino, Bologna, 1979
Kant, Immanuel - Critique of Judgement, Bompiani, Milano 2004
del combo newyorkese 
