John Ruskin and the Science of Sight

4 October 2022 – 6 January 2023

The Royal Society, London – John Ruskin in the Age of Science (3)

Exhibition Leaflet: John Ruskin and the Science of Sight

Exhibition Blog: ‘John Ruskin and ‘heart-sight”

John Ruskin (1819-1900) lived in an era of rapid scientific development. Scientific observation in fields including astronomy and meteorology was being transformed by new optical devices, new printing technologies and new aesthetic styles. This in turn placed a spotlight on the role of visuality and visual instruments, forms of visual evidence, and questions concerning the authority of images and the kinds of image that could serve as scientific standards. Ruskin cultivated what he called ‘the instrument of sight’ and exploited developments in optical technologies to explore the world with extreme visual clarity. Throughout his career Ruskin continued to extend the uses of science to art, and art to science. This exhibition examines observation and evidence in Ruskin’s works, alongside his scientific contemporaries. Along with other artists and scientists of the day, Ruskin explored new ways of representing and communicating scientific discovery, experimenting with optical devices such as the microscope, telescope, stereoscope, camera lucida and photography.

John Ruskin in the Age of Science

This exhibition was the third in the series ‘John Ruskin in the Age of Science’. John Ruskin (1819-1900) lived in an era of rapid scientific progress that shaped modern Britain. Curated by Sandra Kemp (The Ruskin), with Keith Moore (the Royal Society) and Howard Hull (Brantwood), the exhibitions place Ruskin alongside his nineteenth century scientific contemporaries, exploring his influence on science and society, in his time and our own.