Atom Power E=mc2 by Marion Wilner
Multiple-plate photopolymer aquatint on Magnani Pescia paper with Kozo applied chine collé
Image size: 8.375” x 7.75”
Atom Power E=mc2
It was the mathematical perfection and the particular beauty of E=mc 2 that first ensnared me.
And when I read Einstein’s statement, “The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science,” I remembered the atom.
The vision of the future promised an atomic age with nuclear energy as the global, utopian technology that would fulfill all human needs. I was a teenager in 1945 when that promise turned to horror --- the “Little Boy” uranium bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima and three days later the “Fat Man” plutonium bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. The mushroom cloud in this print is the image of death by atoms.
After World War II the Atomic Age brought with it a feeling of optimism as well as many challenges. Highly radiated materials may overheat and escape, while nuclear waste needs to be disposed of safely. The Three Mile Island accident, the Chernobyl disaster and the recent devastation in Fukushima have aroused nuclear protests. There is dread, fear and lack of enthusiasm for nuclear power in the United States.
It is no easy matter to separate peaceful users of modern technology from military or terrorist causes. Nuclear conflict may mean the end of life on this planet. The words in this print ask us to choose life or death. The red atomic symbols dance across the cloud of destruction teasing us with power. Scientists anticipate that oil and coal are running out. Solar and wind power are not sufficient for our energy needs.
Can we harness that power for good and combat global warming as well? Clearly, the time seems to be right to reconsider the future of the atom.