Cycle of Controlled Chaos
Jacob Campbell
Artwork Part of ‘Chaos‘ (Issue 21)
The Science
Jacob's painting attempts to capture the scientific definition of the essence of chaos. In physics, chaos is described as the formless matter that existed before the creation of the universe. The painting depicts this as a colourful void, similar to a burgeoning nebula. Jacob also wanted to touch on chaos in relation to time through his painting. This was achieved by the lunar cycle itself being depicted happening all at once, shattering the perceived order of the universe. This also applies to the cycle of Life and Death as well, with the serpent's skeleton giving way to new growth.
The Medium
This piece was made on a 9' by 12' white canvas using acrylic paints. Several photographs and abstract works were used as a reference for the composition. Some of these references included illustrations of the lunar cycle, including eclipses, as well as photographs of snake skeletons. Since most of this work is abstract in nature, the idea for the composition comes from Jacob's imagination when he pictures chaos inside his mind.
The Artist
Jacob Campbell (he/him) is an American artist who lives outside of Philadelphia, in the United States of America. As well as painting and digital media he has an interest in many fields of Earth Science, including meteorology, oceanography, and geology. His work on combining scientific data with paintings of endangered species was put on display in the Brandywine campus library of Pennsylvania State University and was awarded the 2024 GeoCUR Award for Excellence in Student Research.
Copyright statement. This work is published under the CC BY-NC-SA license