Black holes have captured the imagination of scientists and the public alike, inspiring not only scientific inquiry but also artistic expression. Once considered speculative, these fascinating cosmic phenomena are the focal point of a new book titled Conjuring the Void: The Art of Black Holes.
Authored by Lynn Gamwell, a former director of the New York Academy of Science’s Gallery of Art and Science, the book explores the intersection between math, art, and science—a subject Gamwell is well-versed in. Her expertise made her a natural speaker at Harvard’s interdisciplinary Black Hole Initiative's annual conference, where she discussed the art surrounding black holes. This eventually led to the creation of Conjuring the Void.
“I was just astounded at how much art there is about black holes, and I was specifically interested in Asian art,” Gamwell shared with Ars Technica. “There’s just something about the concept of a black hole that resonates with the Eastern tradition. Many themes—like the science of black holes, void, nothingness, and being inescapable—connect with the philosophies of Buddhism and Taoism.”
Gamwell's book begins with a chronological overview of major scientific breakthroughs in black hole research, starting from Isaac Newton and John Mitchell's 1783 idea of “dark stars,” to Albert Einstein’s general relativity predictions, to modern discoveries such as the 2016 LIGO collaboration’s detection of gravitational waves and the 2019 image of a black hole captured by the Event Horizon Telescope. This scientific narrative serves as a foundation for showcasing an array of black-hole-inspired art, spanning from early 20th-century illustrations to innovative contemporary pieces unearthed through Gamwell's research.