YQI/Franke Nontechnical Talk: Nicholas Milkovich - Art and Material Science

Your cells are leaking! - The uncanny biomechnical world of polyethylene art

Why choose between Biomechanical Engineering and Art when you can do both? Sculptor Nicholas Milkovich studied Mechanical Engineering and Studio Art at the University of Virginia, and doubled down with a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Boston University and an MFA from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Truly at the intersection of art and science, engineering has played a critical role in his arts education and permeates almost every aspect of his art-making process, without never becoming the focus. Nicholas’ practice sits in a foundation of material science and structure, always closely linked to research. His work often pays attention to mechanical concepts such as structural load distribution, elastics, and tension. Inspired by the human body, perfectly fabricated machine made up of nature’s most clever designs, his installations use smaller repeated units inform the larger structure, mimicking the biological motif in an effort to both overwhelm and control processes otherwise left passive. For this talk, Nicholas will guide us through his wonderful uncanny biological world of synthetic nylon and polyethylene! Join us for a journey of uncanny bodily “wrongness”, both physical and internal.

Host or Publisher Yale Quantum Institute