As Carl Sagan put it, “A galaxy is composed of dust and stars—billions upon billions of stars.” It’s true… space is not as dark as one might think. In fact, it is often far brighter than anyone imagined, a tapestry of shadow and exquisite lights... a dimensional fabric with a subtle texture of brilliance, stretching back in layer upon layer, plane upon plane. |
“My God… it’s full of stars.” David Bowman, 2010 |
Points of light with maybe a twinkle here and there, stars can seem fairly unremarkable at first. Closer analysis, however, reveals that stars are not boring in the least, and in fact play a vital role in celestial art. Whether they are seen up close or from afar, these luminous pinpricks provide two crucial elements in a scene: a sense of depth and a source of light. When combined with a healthy dose of variety stars can convey fathomless depths. Similar to looking into a lake and watching the sun reflect off particles in the water, stars recede in layer upon layer of tiny specks, diminishing in size and visibility as the distance between themselves and the viewer increase. A simple glance at the night sky illustrates this point, revealing also that not all stars are created equal: they vary in size and composition according to their nature. Like a crowd of random people, the sky reveals stars of different masses and in different stages of their lives. Taking a closer look, the specks of light lose their innocent purity. At close range a raging tempest is revealed: a roiling ball of fusion, light, and energy that is held together only by the tenuous balance between energy released and gravity retaining. Suddenly that pinprick of light has a fiery presence and personality that demands recognition. A look at the sun illustrates this nicely, and easily dispels any notion that stars are simple, perfect spheres of light. Sunspots mar a surface of churning texture, and erupting flares leap out into space. The sun is a caged beast, and it acts like it with a fury unmatched.
There are many different types of stars, broadly categorized by their color and size. The color of a star is determined by its temperature, a result of the ferocity of its fusion reactions and often in direct correlation to the size of the star itself. Red giants are generally the coolest in temperature, and white or blue stars the hottest. Our sun for example, is a midsize yellow star, apparently quite common and with a moderate temperature. Like other stars, it is a collection of gases that exist in a state of perpetual turmoil, a giant ongoing fusion reaction held together by the gravity of its immense size. It is our constant friend and benefactor, providing light and heat in a curiously opportune balance that has allowed life to flourish on Earth. When it reaches the end of its lifespan (in several billion years), however, it will likely swell to become a red giant for a brief time… a stage of development that will result in the incineration of the inner planets, including Earth. At the end of this stage, it will then collapse in on itself to become a white dwarf, eventually burning itself out. This represents a generalized life cycle that most stars follow save those stars that have huge amounts of mass. Those may go out a bit more dramatically with the cataclysmic event known as a supernova and leave a slowly fading splash of light and color known as a supernova remnant.
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Stars can also be community dwellers. This means that they exist not only as singular specks in the deepness of space, but in clusters and galaxies as well. It is also possible that they will not always be shining through pristine space. Some stars may live ensconced within a haze of dust, others amidst full-fl edged planetary nebulae. Others fall victim to dark matter (called dark for a reason, apparently) and are partially or even completely obscured. Each star tells part of a story, and together they weave a scene as fully expressive and emotive as any landscape or character study. That covers the sheer physical nature of a sun…how they are used in art is a diff erent matter of study altogether. As a source of light and energy, a sun can be an amazingly benevolent character. Stars can be peaceful companions in a night sky, or glittering treasure in pockets of light amidst a diaphanous nebula. Imagine stars as a handful of brightly glowing dust… the uses for such an amazing element are endless, as is the wonder one can evoke in a viewer if they are used well. Stars have been and always will be an important element of space. In point of fact, you don’t see a whole lot of celestial artwork without them. They always seem to be included in some form or another, like some unspoken prerequisite for a space image, and can be used as anything from a simple texture to a major character in a scene. Such amazing versatility is not to be taken for granted. It is always worth taking the time for a little experimentation to learn—to know— how you can use these luminous characters in your art and do them justice. One thing you see very rarely is a space image that is only space, 0nly stars. Very few people have taken the time to perfect such a piece, as most are used to seeing stars as merely a task on the road to a larger goal. Personally, I think that stars are worthy objects of study all by themselves, and that there is seldom anything as beautiful—or as peaceful—than a view of deep space…full of stars. |
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