Caption: Iron Skulls Co dancers Adrian Vega (left) and Diego Garrido performed the dance duet Un último recuerdo for the spectators participating in the study. Photo Credit: Juanmi Ponce
An October 2, 2024 University of Helsinki press release (also on EurekAlert but published October 15, 2024) describes research exploring the differences in brain activity between audience members with extensive dance or music experience and audiences with little of experience of either,
University of Helsinki researchers measured the brain activity of people watching a live dance performance in a real-world setting. They invited spectators with extensive experience of either dance or music as well as novices with no particular background in either of these areas.
The spectators’ brain activity was measured using EEG while they watched the live dance duet Un último recuerdo, a piece created by the Spanish Iron Skulls Co that combines contemporary dance and breakdance.
Experienced dancers respond more strongly than novices
The results showed that dance experience is detectable in spectators’ brain activity during a dance performance. The experienced dancers watching the performance displayed stronger synchronisation than the novices at the low theta frequency.
Experience of dance affects brain functions associated with the visualisation of movement in the mind, the simultaneous integration of several sensory stimuli (listening to music and watching dance) and social interaction.
When musicians watched the live dance performance, they had stronger synchrony in the delta band, which is even lower than theta. This may be associated with the musicians’ trained ability to observe rhythmic bodily movements.
Watching dance in a real-world environment is unique for our brain
The effect of watching a dance performance on brain activity has previously been studied by having subjects watch a video recording on their own in a brain research laboratory.
The present study was conducted in a real-world performance environment and shows that watching a live dance performance in a full venue activates the brain more extensively than the above setting.
“As our interaction increasingly moves to online platforms and the virtual world, it’s important to know that real-world interaction is unique – for our body and brain,” says Hanna Poikonen, the lead author of the study.
The results also emphasise the effect of a background in creative movement on the spectator experience.
“If we have practised our bodily skills, we may better understand the body language of others, which makes social interaction smoother,” Poikonen notes.
Way back in time (see my March 6, 2012 posting), I featured some research into how experienced ballet watchers (not dancers or musicians) experienced a ballet performance.
First, thank you to anyone who’s dropped by to read any of my posts. Second, I didn’t quite catch up on my backlog in what was then the new year (2024) despite my promises. (sigh) I will try to publish my drafts in a more timely fashion but I start this coming year as I did 2024 with a backlog of two to three months. This may be my new normal.
As for now, here’s an overview of FrogHeart’s 2024. The posts that follow are loosely organized under a heading but many of them could fit under other headings as well. After my informal review, there’s some material on foretelling the future as depicted in an exhibition, “Oracles, Omens and Answers,” at the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford.
Human enhancement: prosthetics, robotics, and more
Within a year or two of starting this blog I created a tag ‘machine/flesh’ to organize information about a number of converging technologies such as robotics, brain implants, and prosthetics that could alter our concepts of what it means to be human. The larger category of human enhancement functions in much the same way also allowing a greater range of topics to be covered.
Here are some of the 2024 human enhancement and/or machine/flesh stories on this blog,
As for anyone who’s curious about hydrogels, there’s this from an October 20, 2016 article by D.C.Demetre for ScienceBeta, Note: A link has been removed,
Hydrogels, materials that can absorb and retain large quantities of water, could revolutionise medicine. Our bodies contain up to 60% water, but hydrogels can hold up to 90%.
It is this similarity to human tissue that has led researchers to examine if these materials could be used to improve the treatment of a range of medical conditions including heart disease and cancer.
These days hydrogels can be found in many everyday products, from disposable nappies and soft contact lenses to plant-water crystals. But the history of hydrogels for medical applications started in the 1960s.
Scientists developed artificial materials with the ambitious goal of using them in permanent contact applications , ones that are implanted in the body permanently.
For anyone who wants a more technical explanation, there’s the Hydrogel entry on Wikipedia.
Science education and citizen science
Where science education is concerned I’m seeing some innovative approaches to teaching science, which can include citizen science. As for citizen science (also known as, participatory science) I’ve been noticing heightened interest at all age levels.
It’s been another year where artificial intelligence (AI) has absorbed a lot of energy from nearly everyone. I’m highlighting the more unusual AI stories I’ve stumbled across,
As you can see, I’ve tucked in two tangentially related stories, one which references a neuromorphic computing story ((see my Neuromorphic engineering category or search for ‘memristors’ in the blog search engine for more on brain-like computing topics) and the other is intellectual property. There are many, many more stories on these topics
Art/science (or art/sci or sciart)
It’s a bit of a surprise to see how many art/sci stories were published here this year, although some might be better described as art/tech stories.
There may be more 2024 art/sci stories but the list was getting long. In addition to searching for art/sci on the blog search engine, you may want to try data sonification too.
Moving off planet to outer space
This is not a big interest of mine but there were a few stories,
I expect to be delighted, horrified, thrilled, and left shaking my head by science stories in 2025. Year after year the world of science reveals a world of wonder.
More mundanely, I can state with some confidence that my commentary (mentioned in the future-oriented subsection of my 2023 review and 2024 look forward) on Quantum Potential, a 2023 report from the Council of Canadian Academies, will be published early in this new year as I’ve almost finished writing it.
Some questions are hard to answer and always have been. Does my beloved love me back? Should my country go to war? Who stole my goats?
Questions like these have been asked of diviners around the world throughout history – and still are today. From astrology and tarot to reading entrails, divination comes in a wide variety of forms.
Yet they all address the same human needs. They promise to tame uncertainty, help us make decisions or simply satisfy our desire to understand.
Anthropologists and historians like us study divination because it sheds light on the fears and anxieties of particular cultures, many of which are universal. Our new exhibition at Oxford’s Bodleian Library, Oracles, Omens & Answers, explores these issues by showcasing divination techniques from around the world.
…
1. Spider divination
In Cameroon, Mambila spider divination (ŋgam dù) addresses difficult questions to spiders or land crabs that live in holes in the ground.
Asking the spiders a question involves covering their hole with a broken pot and placing a stick, a stone and cards made from leaves around it. The diviner then asks a question in a yes or no format while tapping the enclosure to encourage the spider or crab to emerge. The stick and stone represent yes or no, while the leaf cards, which are specially incised with certain meanings, offer further clarification.
…
2. Palmistry
Reading people’s palms (palmistry) is well known as a fairground amusement, but serious forms of this divination technique exist in many cultures. The practice of reading the hands to gather insights into a person’s character and future was used in many ancient cultures across Asia and Europe.
In some traditions, the shape and depth of the lines on the palm are richest in meaning. In others, the size of the hands and fingers are also considered. In some Indian traditions, special marks and symbols appearing on the palm also provide insights.
Palmistry experienced a huge resurgence in 19th-century England and America, just as the science of fingerprints was being developed. If you could identify someone from their fingerprints, it seemed plausible to read their personality from their hands.
…
3. Bibliomancy
If you want a quick answer to a difficult question, you could try bibliomancy. Historically, this DIY [do-it-yourself] divining technique was performed with whatever important books were on hand.
Throughout Europe, the works of Homer or Virgil were used. In Iran, it was often the Divan of Hafiz, a collection of Persian poetry. In Christian, Muslim and Jewish traditions, holy texts have often been used, though not without controversy.
…
4. Astrology
Astrology exists in almost every culture around the world. As far back as ancient Babylon, astrologers have interpreted the heavens to discover hidden truths and predict the future.
…
5. Calendrical divination
Calendars have long been used to divine the future and establish the best times to perform certain activities. In many countries, almanacs still advise auspicious and inauspicious days for tasks ranging from getting a haircut to starting a new business deal.
In Indonesia, Hindu almanacs called pawukon [calendar] explain how different weeks are ruled by different local deities. The characteristics of the deities mean that some weeks are better than others for activities like marriage ceremonies.
6 December 2024 – 27 April 2025 ST Lee Gallery, Weston Library
The Bodleian Libraries’ new exhibition, Oracles, Omens and Answers, will explore the many ways in which people have sought answers in the face of the unknown across time and cultures. From astrology and palm reading to weather and public health forecasting, the exhibition demonstrates the ubiquity of divination practices, and humanity’s universal desire to tame uncertainty, diagnose present problems, and predict future outcomes.
Through plagues, wars and political turmoil, divination, or the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown, has remained an integral part of society. Historically, royals and politicians would consult with diviners to guide decision-making and incite action. People have continued to seek comfort and guidance through divination in uncertain times — the COVID-19 pandemic saw a rise in apps enabling users to generate astrological charts or read the Yijing [I Ching], alongside a growth in horoscope and tarot communities on social media such as ‘WitchTok’. Many aspects of our lives are now dictated by algorithmic predictions, from e-health platforms to digital advertising. Scientific forecasters as well as doctors, detectives, and therapists have taken over many of the societal roles once held by diviners. Yet the predictions of today’s experts are not immune to criticism, nor can they answer all our questions.
Curated by Dr Michelle Aroney, whose research focuses on early modern science and religion, and Professor David Zeitlyn, an expert in the anthropology of divination, the exhibition will take a historical-anthropological approach to methods of prophecy, prediction and forecasting, covering a broad range of divination methods, including astrology, tarot, necromancy, and spider divination.
Dating back as far as ancient Mesopotamia, the exhibition will show us that the same kinds of questions have been asked of specialist practitioners from around the world throughout history. What is the best treatment for this illness? Does my loved one love me back? When will this pandemic end? Through materials from the archives of the Bodleian Libraries alongside other collections in Oxford, the exhibition demonstrates just how universally human it is to seek answers to difficult questions.
Highlights of the exhibition include: oracle bones from Shang Dynasty China (ca. 1250-1050 BCE); an Egyptian celestial globe dating to around 1318; a 16th-century armillary sphere from Flanders, once used by astrologers to place the planets in the sky in relation to the Zodiac; a nineteenth-century illuminated Javanese almanac; and the autobiography of astrologer Joan Quigley, who worked with Nancy and Ronald Reagan in the White House for seven years. The casebooks of astrologer-physicians in 16th- and 17th-century England also offer rare insights into the questions asked by clients across the social spectrum, about their health, personal lives, and business ventures, and in some cases the actions taken by them in response.
The exhibition also explores divination which involves the interpretation of patterns or clues in natural things, with the idea that natural bodies contain hidden clues that can be decrypted. Some diviners inspect the entrails of sacrificed animals (known as ‘extispicy’), as evidenced by an ancient Mesopotamian cuneiform tablet describing the observation of patterns in the guts of birds. Others use human bodies, with palm readers interpreting characters and fortunes etched in their clients’ hands. A sketch of Oscar Wilde’s palms – which his palm reader believed indicated “a great love of detail…extraordinary brain power and profound scholarship” – shows the revival of palmistry’s popularity in 19th century Britain.
The exhibition will also feature a case study of spider divination practised by the Mambila people of Cameroon and Nigeria, which is the research specialism of curator Professor David Zeitlyn, himself a Ŋgam dù diviner. This process uses burrowing spiders or land crabs to arrange marked leaf cards into a pattern, which is read by the diviner. The display will demonstrate the methods involved in this process and the way in which its results are interpreted by the card readers. African basket divination has also been observed through anthropological research, where diviners receive answers to their questions in the form of the configurations of thirty plus items after they have been tossed in the basket.
Dr Michelle Aroney and Professor David Zeitlyn, co-curators of the exhibition, say:
Every day we confront the limits of our own knowledge when it comes to the enigmas of the past and present and the uncertainties of the future. Across history and around the world, humans have used various techniques that promise to unveil the concealed, disclosing insights that offer answers to private or shared dilemmas and help to make decisions. Whether a diviner uses spiders or tarot cards, what matters is whether the answers they offer are meaningful and helpful to their clients. What is fun or entertainment for one person is deadly serious for another.
Richard Ovenden, Bodley’s [a nickname? Bodleian Libraries were founded by Sir Thomas Bodley] Librarian, said:
People have tried to find ways of predicting the future for as long as we have had recorded history. This exhibition examines and illustrates how across time and culture, people manage the uncertainty of everyday life in their own way. We hope that through the extraordinary exhibits, and the scholarship that brings them together, visitors to the show will appreciate the long history of people seeking answers to life’s biggest questions, and how people have approached it in their own unique way.
The exhibition will be accompanied by the book Divinations, Oracles & Omens, edited by Michelle Aroney and David Zeitlyn, which will be published by Bodleian Library Publishing on 5 December 2024.
Courtesy: Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford
I’m not sure why the preceding image is used to illustrate the exhibition webpage but I find it quite interesting. Should you be in Oxford, UK and lucky enough to visit the exhibition, there are a few more details on the Oracles, Omens and Answers event webpage, Note: There are 26 Bodleian Libraries at Oxford and the exhibition is being held in the Weston Library,
EXHIBITION
Oracles, Omens and Answers
6 December 2024 – 27 April 2025
ST Lee Gallery, Weston Library
Free admission, no ticket required
…
Note: This exhibition includes a large continuous projection of spider divination practice, including images of the spiders in action.
Exhibition tours
Oracles, Omens and Answers exhibition tours are available on selected Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1–1.45pm and are open to all.
A November 4, 2024 ArtSci Salon notice (received via email and visible here, along with some embedded images, for a limited time) announces a series of events and a book launch,
Fall 2024 has brought us climate and political uncertainty. In November, we bring you some food for thought: join us at these events to reflect on uncertainty, shapeshifting Matter, Unstable Universes and Viral Phenomena .
Mark Your calendars on November 14, November 18 and November 21 see details below (in reverse chronological order)
Shapeshifting Matter for an Unstable Universe artist talk and discussion with Daniela Brill Estrada Thursday, November 21, [2024] 5:30-7:30 pm The Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Science
Shapeshifting matter for an unstable universe is an in-disciplinary artistic project that challenges taxonomies and categories that divide nature into different boxes, not allowing bodies to exist freely, simply as part of the shapeshifting matter that inhabits this universe. The research tackles topics from astrophysics to origin of life research, and is based on daniela’s own experiences in understanding her own existence outside of these categories.
DANIELA BRILL ESTRADAis and artist and researcher from Bogotá based in vVenna [?]. inspired by origin of life research and astrobiology, she explores chemical trajectories, particularly those based on carbon. Currently, Daniela is an artist in residence at the SETI [search for extraterrestrial intelligence] institute and at the University at Buffalo, and a PhD candidate at the art x science school for transformation in Linz, Austria.
Join us at Celebrate Research Week and ORIHI launch (Osler Centre Institute for Health Innovation)
November 18, 2024 1. 11:00 am -12:00 pm Opening of Art and Science Exhibition with Daniela Brill Estrada and others 2. 2:00-3:30 pm Discussion and artist talk with Daniela Brill Estrada and Roberta Buiani
Osler Centre Institute for Health Innovation Brampton Civic Hospital Atrium 2100 Bovaird Drive East Brampton, ON L6R 3J7
Stay tuned for the the link to the Hybrid Event see more information and full program below
In a new era of global virology that requires novel methodologies to improve the comprehension of viruses and viral phenomena, Viral Behaviors explores the cultural, material, and artistic significance of viruses and viral phenomena.
The book contains a decade of research across art, science and technology and examines the struggles and successes of science and technology to tame the elusive nature and behavior of viruses, and the potential of art-based and cross-disciplinary collaborations to better communicate their complex making and intense entanglement with the world at large. Combining perspectives from art, philosophy, science and technology, it places biological and informational viruses alongside each other, revealing that, while the two types of agents affect the world in very different ways, their histories and manifestations contain surprising similarities that speak to a cultural continuum.
The book can be also borrowed from the University of Toronto Library and York University Library. don’t forget to tell your library to get a copy!
I wonder why they’re using the US spelling for ‘behaviours’. Leaving that aside, I’m sure it’s possible to enjoy one or more of the events and/or the book.
Not sure how I stumbled across this XR (extended reality) artist-in-residence programme but it’s been in place since 2022 (albeit with some changes). Here’s the announcement for the 2024 artist-in-residence, from the August 14, 2024 Consulate of France in Vancouver press release,
French artist Pierre Friquet, also known as, PYARé, is the latest laureate of the “XR Fall” residency dedicated to XR/AR/VR [extended reality/augmented reality/virtual reality], its third edition. He will be in Vancouver from October 29 to November 28, 2024.
This residency is a collaboration between the Consulate General of France in Vancouver, the Alliance française of Vancouver, the cultural institution of the City of “Paris Forum des Images”, Emily Carr University of Art and Design and the Institut français.
A hybrid creator based in Paris, Pierre Friquet has been designing immersive experiences (VR, dome films, AR, video mapping,) such as Spaced Out, Jet Lag, Vibrations and Patterns since 2010. His intent is to make people reconnect with their body and sense of self through art and technology.
These experiments have won awards at the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma, the Kaléidoscope festival and the Filmgate festival. His latest VR project, SPACE OUT, an immersive diving mask, was selected for the Sundance New Frontier 2020 festival and featured in the cultural programme of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Founder of the NiGHT collective, his projects include aquatic virtual reality.
In Vancouver, he will be working around the character of Captain Nemo, the famous warrior scientist in Jules Verne’s novel “20,000 leagues under the sea”.
The residency’s objective is to create an immersive experience allowing users to embody Captain Nemo in a VR adventure, piloting a gondola or riding a whale using intuitive VR controls. His work will focus on the symbiosis between technology and nature, marine conservation and post-colonial adventure. Project by PYARé & INVR.
Find out more about his artistic vision and creations on his website.
You have to have been resident in France for at least five years and speak English to be eligible.
Preparing for the 2025 calls for applications?
There are, in fact, three programmes: two in Vancouver,(1) the XR/AR/VR [extended reality/augmented reality/virtual reality artist-in-residence and (2) Arts & Sciences Quantum Studio artist-in-residence and there’s another ‘quantum programme’ in Paris, also called the Arts & Sciences Quantum Studio artist-in-residence.
The 2025 calls haven’t been announced yet but I do have the 2024 calls for applications and they should give you some idea of what questions you’ll need to answer and what materials you’ll need to prepare. These calls are in French.
Résidence « XR Fall» à Vancouver 29 octobre au 28 novembre 2024
Initiée par l’ambassade de France au Canada / consulat général de Vancouver dans le cadre de leur programme « Résidences Ouest-Ouest », en partenariat avec le Forum des Images (Paris), Emily Carr University of Art + Design (Vancouver), l’Alliance française Vancouver, et avec le soutien de l’Institut français, la troisième édition de la résidence d’écriture et de recherche “XR Fall” à Vancouver se déroulera du 29 octobre au 28 novembre 2024 à Vancouver, en Colombie-Britannique, Canada.
Ouverte à l’ensemble des réalités immersives, cette résidence doit permettre à un·e créateur·rice français·e de s’immerger au sein de l’écosystème local vancouvérois afin d’enrichir son projet d’écriture-recherche et d’étoffer son réseau professionnel. Elle sera également l’occasion de renforcer les liens et de créer de nouvelles synergies entre la France et l’Ouest canadien dans le domaine des innovations numériques. Cette résidence se tiendra à Vancouver du mardi 29 octobre au jeudi 28 novembre 2024.
Pendant la Résidence d’écriture-recherche, le·a créateur·rice sélectionné·e se consacrera au développement de son projet immersif pour lequel iel est invité·e à travailler en coopération avec des professionnel·les vancouvérois.es, ainsi qu’avec des équipes techniques et des sociétés de production locales. Le programme a également pour but d’aider le·a créateur·rice sélectionné·e à renforcer son réseau et ses compétences.
1.2 – Déroulé de la résidence
Du 29 octobre au 28 novembre 2024 à Vancouver, sur le campus d’Emily Carr University of Art + Design.
1.3 – Objectifs
Impulser ou consolider un projet d’écriture-recherche.
Favoriser la découverte de l’écosystème numérique de l’Ouest canadien, ainsi que des collaborations structurantes.
Une attention privilégiée sera portée aux projets ancrés dans le contexte local.
À l’issue de la résidence, l’artiste devra proposer un compte-rendu de son expérience, de son travail et de l’évolution du projet durant cette période.
1.4 – Avantages
Ce programme garantit, notamment, à la lauréate / au lauréat :
Une bourse de résidence à hauteur de 2.000 € (correspondant aux per-diem et à la participation à trois demi-journées de conférences/classes de maître durant la résidence)
Mise en réseau et relations avec l’écosystème local
Participation à des événements en Colombie-Britannique
Autres contreparties (conditions à définir ensemble) :
présentation du projet dans le cadre de NewImages Festival 2025
accréditation pour les Journées pro de NewImages Festival 2025
Présenter le fruit de son travail en résidence (prototype, work-in-progress) dans le cadre de V-Unframed 2025 (Vancouver)
1.5 – Équipement et accompagnement
Au sein d’Emily Carr University of Art + Design, ce programme garantit, notamment, à la lauréate / au lauréat :
L’accès au Basically Good Media Lab en tant qu’espace de travail sur une base régulière. Il s’agit d’un espace collaboratif et partagé avec des chercheurs des premier et deuxième cycles et des assistants de recherche.
L’accès à un ordinateur de pointe : un Dell Precision 3660 ; 32 Go de RAM ; i9-12900K (16 cœurs) ; NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080.
Appui technique : support technique ponctuel pour aider l’artiste à réaliser son projet.
Mentorat d’Emily Carr University of Art + Design pour fournir un retour sur le projet et les approches de l’artiste, aider à faciliter l’utilisation des ressources et fournir des opportunités potentielles de mise en réseau avec la communauté.
L’accès à d’autres installations sur le campus, en fonction de leur disponibilité, y compris l’Integrated Motion Studio pour une utilisation en tant qu’atelier ou espace boîte noire. Le Basically Good Media Lab dispose de casques de réalité augmentée et virtuelle, avec des caméras 360 grand public et prosumers.
L’artiste sera également accompagné durant la résidence par les équipes de l’ambassade de France au Canada présentes à Vancouver et par celles de l’Alliance française Vancouver.
2- Conditions d’éligibilité
2.1 – Profil des candidat.e.s
Ce programme est ouvert à tout·e artiste, créateur.rice ou porteur.euse d’un projet XR en écriture-recherche.
Âgé.e d’au moins 18 ans
Résidant en France depuis au moins 5 ans
Parlant anglais
Professionnel.le confirmé.e, justifiant de premières expériences dans le domaine des réalités immersive
2.2 – Projets acceptés
Ce programme est ouvert aux réalités immersives dans toute leur diversité (réalité virtuelle 360° ou interactive, augmentée, mixte, installation incluant des technologies immersives, en lien avec la création sonore ou la technologie 4D, etc.).
Les projets devront être reliés à au moins l’un des grands thèmes suivants :
Durabilité environnementale
Justice écologique et action climatique
Justice sociale, santé et bien-être de la communauté
Recherches portant sur le territoire et les lieux
3- Processus d’inscription
3.1 – À propos de l’appel à candidatures
L’inscription du projet :
Doit être faite en anglais
Doit être faite en ligne à https://zhx2xeql.paperform.com jusqu’au dimanche 30 juin 2024 (23:59, GMT)
Doit être envoyée en un seul PDF
Est gratuite pour l’ensemble des postulant·es
À noter également :
Les inscriptions incomplètes ne seront pas prises en considération
Vos informations sont automatiquement sauvegardées en local ; vous pouvez donc fermer et/ou revenir ultérieurement au formulaire depuis le même appareil et le même navigateur (hors fenêtres de navigation privée)
Nous vous conseillons vivement de ne pas attendre les derniers jours de l’appel à candidatures pour soumettre votre projet, afin d’éviter tout problème technique.
En inscrivant un projet, vous reconnaissez détenir les droits afférents à celui-ci ou être habilité·e par tou·te·s les autres ayants droit. Le Forum des images, l’ambassade de France au Canada / consulat général de Vancouver, Emily Carr University of Art + Design, l’Alliance française Vancouver et l’Institut français ne peuvent en aucun cas être tenus pour responsables en cas de réclamation, conflit ou poursuite en lien avec l’inscription du projet.
3.2 – Informations requises
Avant votre inscription, nous vous invitons à prendre connaissance des informations et pièces demandées dans le dossier de présentation devant être joint à votre inscription (dans le même ordre que ci-dessous) :
Le plan de travail envisagé pour la résidence (prévisionnel)
Des visuels du projet (le cas échéant)
Une lettre de recommandation et/ou une lettre d’une institution culturelle française accompagnant le projet en vue d’une future exposition ou production de l’œuvre (facultative)
L’ambassade de France au Canada, en partenariat avec le Quantum Information Center Sorbonne (Sorbonne Université), le CENTQUATRE-PARIS (Paris) et le programme des résidences internationales Ville de Paris aux Récollets, lance le volet français de la résidence arts-sciences “Quantum Studio”. Cette résidence d’artiste aura lieu du 9 au 30 septembre 2024à Paris, France. Elle s’adresse à un ou une artiste canadien.ne résidant en Colombie-Britannique explorant les croisements entre arts et sciences.
Ouverte à l’ensemble des pratiques artistiques, la résidence cherche à construire des échanges entre arts et sciences quantiques (physique quantique, informatique quantique, physique de l’infiniment petit, sciences des matériaux, physique fondamentale).
Le Quantum Information Center Sorbonne (Sorbonne Université) et le CENTQUATRE-PARIS offriront à l’artiste sélectionné.e un espace de réflexion dans lequel artistes et chercheurs pourront se réunir, échanger sur leurs pratiques, apprendre les uns des autres et réfléchir ensemble à un projet créatif à la croisée des arts et des sciences. En amont de la résidence à Paris, plusieurs rencontres en ligne seront organisées, afin d’établir et d’entretenir un premier contact entre l’artiste lauréat.e au Canada et l’équipe hôte (institutions et scientifiques) de Paris.
1.2 – Déroulé de la résidence
Du 9 au 30 septembre 2024à Paris (hébergement au couvent des Récollets).
1.3 – Objectifs
Impulser ou consolider un projet créatif.
Le ou la lauréat.e a une obligation de restitution de recherche ou de rendu artistique (projet écrit, esquisses et croquis, œuvre, etc.) pendant leur séjour.
Partager son travail lors de séminaires arts et sciences co-organisés avec le Quantum Information Center Sorbonne et le CENTQUATRE-PARIS.
Favoriser la découverte de l’écosystème scientifique et artistique parisien, ainsi que des collaborations structurantes. Une attention privilégiée sera portée aux projets ancrés dans le contexte local.
1.4 – Avantages
Ce programme garantit, notamment, à la lauréate ou au lauréat :
3 semaines de résidence à Paris.
Un hébergement au sein du Couvent des Récollets (Ville de Paris), un bureau de travail au Quantum Information Center Sorbonne et un bureau de production au CENTQUATRE-PARIS.
Prise en charge complète (vols Vancouver-Paris, logement).
Un cachet de résidence à hauteur de 1.635 € (correspondant aux per-diem et à la participation à trois demi-journées de conférences/classes de maître durant la résidence).
Mise en réseau et relations avec l’écosystème local.
Participation, durant la résidence, à des rencontres avec les équipes de la 104factory, à des ouvertures de résidences au CENTQUATRE-PARIS et à des événements se déroulant au CENTQUATRE-PARIS.
Possibilité de participation, en post-résidence, à des événements en lien avec Némo-Biennale internationale des arts numériques de la Région Île-de-France, produite par le CENTQUATRE-PARIS.
2- Conditions d’éligibilité
2.1 – Profil des candidat.e.s
Artiste porteuse ou porteur d’un projet artistique en écriture ou en développement,
Âgé.e d’au moins 18 ans,
De nationalité canadienne ou titulaire d’une carte de résident permanent au Canada
Résidant en Colombie-Britannique,
Justifiant idéalement de premières expériences de création mêlant arts et sciences (les candidatures d’artistes ayant déjà travaillé ou travaillant en lien avec les sciences physiques seront appréciées).
2.2 – Projets acceptés
Ce programme est ouvert aux pratiques artistiques dans toute leur diversité (écriture, arts visuels et plastiques, arts numériques, design, danse, performance, réalités immersives, création sonore, etc.).
I have more information about the Quantum Studio artist-in-residence in Vancouver programme in an October 7, 2024 posting, scroll down t the ‘Quantum Studio’ subhead.
Not exactly an art/science (or sciart) story. let’s call it an art/technology (or techno art) story. The SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute issued an October 22, 2024 news release (also on EurekAlert but published October 23, 2024) announcing the six nominees for SETI’s new artist in residency (AIR) program ‘Algorithmic Imaginings’,
The SETI Artist in Residency (AIR) program announced Algorithmic Imaginings, a new residency that explores how AI technologies affect science and society. The residency focuses on creative research topics such as imaginary life, human-AI collaboration, AI futures, posthumanism, AI and consciousness, and the ethics of AI data. It also connects with current SETI Institute research, including exoplanet studies, astrobiology, signal detection, and advanced computing. The two-year program offers $30,000 in funding and an exhibition at the ZKM | Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe, Germany.
“AI is on everyone’s mind right now, be it ChatGPT4, text-to-video generators such as Sora, and discussions surrounding fake news and copyright,” said Bettina Forget, Director of the AIR program. “AI is a phenomenal tool, but it also comes with opportunities and concerns that should be addressed. This residency allows artists working at the intersection of art and technology to explore new avenues of thinking and connect them to SETI Institute research.”
Internationally recognized media art curator Zhang Ga, SETI AIR program Director Bettina Forget, and SETI AIR program Founder and Senior Advisor Charles Lindsay lead the SETI AIR Algorithmic Imaginings residency. Andrew Siemion, the SETI Institute’s Bernard M. Oliver Chair for SETI Research, and AI researcher Robert Alvarez, who collaborates with the SETI Institute as a mentor for its Frontier Development Lab program, bring their science and technology expertise to this residency.
The residency’s team of advisors selected six outstanding media artists and invited them to submit a project proposal for the SETI AIR Algorithmic Imaginings residency.
“These artists are notable voices with a solid track record of critically and inventively confronting the pressing issues raised by a pervasively technological world,” said Zhang Ga.
“SETI AIR is uniquely poised to participate in the AI zeitgeist that is exploding in San Francisco and Silicon Valley,” said Charles Lindsay. “We will support the most innovative artists of our time. It is time. Now.”
The SETI Institute will announce the winning artist later this fall.
The six nominees of the Art and AI residency are:
Tega Brain Tega Brain’s work examines ecology, data, automation, and infrastructure. She has created projects such as digital networks controlled by environmental phenomena, schemes for obfuscating personal data, and a wildly popular online smell-based dating service.
Dominique Gonzalez Foerster An experimental artist based in Paris, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster explores the different modalities of sensory and cognitive relationships between bodies and spaces, real or fictitious, up to the point of questioning the distance between organic and inorganic life.
Laurent Grasso French-born artist Laurent Grasso has developed a fascination with the visual possibilities related to the science of electromagnetic energy, radio waves, and naturally occurring phenomena.
HeHe (Helen Evans, Heiko Hansen) HeHe is an artist duo consisting of Helen Evans (French, British) and Heiko Hansen (German), based in Le Havre, France. Their works are about the social, industrial, and ecological paradoxes found in today’s technological landscapes. Their practice explores the relationship between art, media, and the environment.
Terike Haapoja Terike Haapoja is an interdisciplinary visual artist, writer, and researcher. Haapoja’s work investigates our world’s existential and political boundaries, specifically focusing on issues arising from the anthropocentric worldview of Western traditions. Animality, multispecies politics, cohabitation, time, loss, and repairing connections are recurring themes in Haapoja’s work.
Wang Yuyang Wang Yuyang is a renowned contemporary Chinese artist teaching at the Central Academy of Fine Arts. Focused on techno-art, his work explores the relationships between technology and art, nature and artificiality, and material and immaterial through an interdisciplinary and multimedia approach.
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About the SETI Institute
Founded in 1984, the SETI Institute is a non-profit, multi-disciplinary research and education organization whose mission is to lead humanity’s quest to understand the origins and prevalence of life and intelligence in the Universe and to share that knowledge with the world. Our research encompasses the physical and biological sciences and leverages expertise in data analytics, machine learning and advanced signal detection technologies. The SETI Institute is a distinguished research partner for industry, academia and government agencies, including NASA and NSF.
Caption: The six nominees for the SETI Institute’s Algorithmic Imaginings residency. Credit: SETI Institute [top row, left to right: Dominique Gonzalez Foerster; HeHe (Helen Evans, Heiko Hansen); Laurent Grasso; bottom row, left to the right: Tega Brain; Terike Haapoja; and Wang Yuyang]
UNESCO triptych Resilience: Artistic Solutions for Human, Ocean and Biodiversity Challenges Downloaded from: https://hypeabis.id/read/42487/unesco-adakan-pameran-triptych-resilience-artistic-solutions-for-human-ocean-and-biodiversity-challenges-di-art-basel-paris
Thank you to the online magazine Hypeabis.id for the image,which accompanies an October 17, 2024 article by Yudi Supriyanto. For those interested in the article, you need Indonesian language skills.
At Art Basel Paris (18-20 October), UNESCO and Nautilus will present the triptych Resilience: Artistic Solutions for Human, Ocean and Biodiversity Challenges, an exhibition that brings together art and science in the search for a new balance between human beings and their environment.
“The union of science and art is fundamental to questioning and reinventing our relationship with the planet. We need both scientists and artists to understand and witness the wonders of biodiversity, and the urgent need to protect them. After Art Basel Miami in December 2023, UNESCO is delighted and proud to once again promoting this dialogue at Art Basel Paris,” said Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO.
In collaboration with Nautilus, Dona Bertarelli Philanthropy, the Schmidt Ocean Institute and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the exhibition Resilience: Artistic Solutions to Human, Ocean and Biodiversity Challenges presented by UNESCO at Art Basel Paris 2024 will consist of three collections:
* Tsunami: Sea Change for Resilience: a series of portraits by Matt Porteous dedicated to the survivors of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, twenty years after the tragedy. The photographer is also the co-founder of Ocean Culture Life, a network that brings together content creators and environmental activists.
* Biodiversity: Through the Lens: a stunning visual exploration of biodiversity devised by Discover Earth, a global community platform through which creators, institutions and partners join forces to raise awareness of the beauty and fragility of our planet, and cooperate to preserve it.
* The Artists-at-Sea collection: works by artists Taiji Terasaki and Rebecca Rutstein inspired by their time on board the R/V Falkor, the oceanographic research vessel of the Schmidt Ocean Institute.
This triptych will be presented in a mixed print and digital format at the UNESCO-Nautilus exhibition in the Grand Palais, which will also host a series of meetings and presentations on art and science over three days.
Members of the public will also be able to discover the Tsunami: Sea Change for Resilience and Biodiversity: Through the Lens collections at their leisure on the outside of UNESCO headquarters until 31 October [2024].
“Combining Nautilus’ innate story-telling mission, UNESCO’s mandate for culture, education and sciences, and a golden group of partners and artists, the exhibition invites us to contemplate the enduring forces of human and natural resilience. Even as we face an era of unprecedented environmental loss, these works of art show us that survival is not just about enduring; it is about adapting, evolving, and thriving against the odds,” said John Steele, Founder and Publisher of Nautilus.
This is UNESCO’s second participation in Art Basel. In December 2023, in Miami, the Organization highlighted the wonders of the deep sea and the importance of marine conservation alongside Nautilus and the Schmidt Ocean Institute. It also hosted several conferences bringing together artists and scientists. These initiatives testify to UNESCO’s determination to place art at the heart of sustainable development.
About UNESCO
With 194 Member States, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization contributes to peace and security by leading multilateral cooperation on education, science, culture, communication and information. Headquartered in Paris, UNESCO has offices in 54 countries and employs over 2300 people. UNESCO oversees more than 2000 World Heritage sites, Biosphere Reserves and Global Geoparks; networks of Creative, Learning, Inclusive and Sustainable Cities; and over 13 000 associated schools, university chairs, training and research institutions. Its Director-General is Audrey Azoulay.
“Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed” – UNESCO Constitution, 1945.
L’UNESCO et Nautilus présenteront à Art Basel Paris (18-20 octobre) le triptyque Résilience : solutions artistiques pour les défis humains, océaniques et de biodiversité, une exposition qui fait dialoguer l’art et la science à la recherche d’un nouvel équilibre entre les êtres humains et leur environnement.
“L’union de la science et de l’art est fondamentale pour interroger et réinventer notre relation à la planète. Nous avons besoin tout à la fois des scientifiques et des artistes pour comprendre et voir les merveilles de la biodiversité, et l’urgence à les protéger. Après Art Basel Miami, en décembre 2023, l’UNESCO est heureuse et fière de promouvoir ce dialogue à Art Basel Paris,” [dit] ]Audrey AzoulayDirectrice générale de l’UNESCO
En collaboration avec Nautilus, Dona Bertarelli Philanthropy, le Schmidt Ocean Institute et le Bureau des Nations Unies pour la réduction des risques de catastrophe (UNDRR), l’exposition Résilience : solutions artistiques pour les défis humains, océaniques et de biodiversité présentée par l’UNESCO à Art Basel Paris 2024 se composera de trois collections :
Tsunami : Changement radical pour la résilience :une série de portraits de Matt Porteous dédiés aux survivants du tsunami de 2004 dans l’océan Indien, vingt ans après la tragédie. Le photographe est aussi le cofondateur d’Ocean Culture Life, un réseau qui met en relation les créateurs de contenu et les défenseurs de l’environnement.
Biodiversité : à travers l’objectif : une étonnante exploration visuelle de la biodiversité imaginée par Discover Earth, plateforme communautaire mondiale par laquelle créateurs, institutions et partenaires s’allient pour sensibiliser à la beauté et à la fragilité de notre planète, et coopèrent pour la préserver.
La collection Artiste en mer : des œuvres des artistes Taiji Terasaki et Rebecca Rutstein inspirées de leur séjour à bord du R/V Falkor, le navire de recherche océanographique du Schmidt Ocean Institute.
Ce triptyque sera présenté dans un format mixte imprimé et numérique au salon UNESCO-Nautilus du Grand Palais qui accueillera également pendant trois jours une série de rencontres et de présentations sur l’art et la science.
Le public pourra également découvrir les collections Tsunami : Changement radical pour la résilience et Biodiversité : à travers l’objectif en accès libre sur les grilles extérieures du siège de l’UNESCO jusqu’au 31 octobre.
“Combinant la mission de Nautilus en matière de narration, le mandat de l’UNESCO pour la culture, l’éducation et les sciences, et l’implication d’un groupe exceptionnel de partenaires et d’artistes, cette exposition nous invite à contempler la résilience des êtres humains et de la nature. Alors même que nous sommes confrontés à un péril environnemental sans précédent, les œuvres exposées nous montrent que la survie n’est pas seulement une question d’endurance ; il s’agit de s’adapter, d’évoluer et de prospérer contre vents et marées,” [dit] John Steele Fondateur et éditeur de Nautilus
Il s’agit de la deuxième participation de l’UNESCO à Art Basel. En décembre 2023, à Miami, l’Organisation avait mis en évidence les merveilles des grands fonds marins et l’importance de la conservation marine aux côtés de Nautilus et du Schmidt Ocean Institute. Elle avait aussi animé plusieurs conférences réunissant artistes et scientifiques. Ces initiatives témoignent de la volonté de l’UNESCO de placer l’art au cœur du développement durable.
À propos de l’UNESCO
Avec 194 États membres, l’Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’éducation, la science et la culture contribue à la paix et à la sécurité en menant la coopération multilatérale dans les domaines de l’éducation, de la science, de la culture, de la communication et de l’information. Basée à Paris, l’UNESCO possède des bureaux dans 54 pays et emploie plus de 2300 personnes. L’UNESCO supervise plus de 2000 sites du patrimoine mondial, réserves de biosphère et géoparcs mondiaux ; des réseaux de villes créatives, apprenantes, inclusives et durables ; et plus de 13 000 écoles, chaires universitaires, établissements de formation et de recherche associés. Sa directrice générale est Audrey Azoulay.
“Puisque les guerres prennent naissance dans l’esprit des hommes, c’est dans l’esprit des hommes que doivent être construites les défenses de la paix” – Constitution de l’UNESCO, 1945.
For anyone who can’t attend Art Basel Paris 2024 but would like to see the exhibition at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, you can find location information and more at the UNESCO House webpage.
The University of British Columbia’s (UBC) Morris & Helen Belkin Art Gallery (The Belkin) sent an October 4, 2024 series of announcements (received via email). Here are two of the announcements, Note 1: You can see all of the announcements on The Belkin events webpage, Note 2: The art/science event is second, Note 3: Links have been removed
Conversation with Weiyi Chang and Lisa Myers
Tuesday, October 8 at 12:30 pm (online)
Please join us for an online conversation between guest curator Weiyi Chang and Lisa Myers, an artist and curator based in Toronto and Port Severn and a member of Beausoleil First Nation. Myers has worked with anthocyanin pigment from blueberries in printmaking and in her stop-motion animation. Her participatory performances involve sharing berries and other food items in social gatherings, reflecting on the value found in place and displacement; straining and absorbing. Recently, her artistic practice has expanded into audio and augmented reality projects that draw attention to the histories of the land, dislocation and gentrification. Through close attention to Myers’s practice, this conversation will allow us to reflect on themes and concerns articulated in An Opulence of Squander, currently on view at the Belkin.
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Artist Talk with Caroline Delétoille
Wednesday, October 16 at 3 pm
As part of Quantum Studio, artist-in-residence Caroline Delétoille will discuss her collaborative partnerships with scientists and engineers while embedded at UBC’s Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute. Delétoille will address her studio and research practices and share some initial insights about “Quantum Sensation,” a project initiated in 2023 in close collaboration with a physicist and philosopher and the focus of her residency at UBC. This talk is part of Ars Scientia, a larger research initiative which seeks to foster knowledge exchange across the arts, sciences and pedagogies.
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More about …
The conversation between Weiyi Chang and Lisa Myers is one of a series known as “Of Other Earths.” Here’s more about the series and the upcoming October 8, 2024 event, from The Belkin’s Conversation Series: Of Other Earths webpage,
Join us for Of Other Earths, a series recuperating forgotten, suppressed and abandoned histories to reconsider capitalist and colonial relationships to the planet and its inhabitants. Multiplying and compounding environmental harms are radically destabilizing earthly habitats, calling into question the viability of existing productivist paradigms that require continuous resource extraction and consumption.
This online conversation series hosted by curator Weiyi Chang foregrounds practitioners who aim to decentre and unsettle the logic of perpetual growth by examining alternative approaches to human-planetary relations. In each session she will engage an artist or scholar about their work in the context of one of the provocations running through the exhibition An Opulence of Squander. These dialogues will offer a generative way to think about how we engage, care for, and conserve past works of art and artists and the ecological lessons that experience might hold.
An Opulence of Squander draws primarily from the Belkin’s collection and focuses on works that critique the imperative for growth at all costs, growth that has contributed to our collective ecological and social conundrum. The works resist the growth imperative and reflect on the dual exploitation of labour and nature.
Join us at the Belkin for an artist talk by Quantum Studio artist-in-residence Caroline Delétoille, who will discuss her collaborative partnerships with scientists and engineers while embedded at UBC’s Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute. Delétoille will address her studio and research practices and share some initial insights about “Quantum Sensation,” a project initiated in 2023 in close collaboration with a physicist and philosopher and the focus of her residency at UBC.
Everyone is welcome and admission is free.
Caroline Delétoille’s month-long artist residency is a collaboration between the Consulate General of France in Vancouver and UBC’s Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute, the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery through Quantum Studio, which is part of a larger program of residencies sponsored by the Embassy of France in Western Canada.
This talk is part of Ars Scientia, a larger research initiative which seeks to foster knowledge exchange across the arts, sciences and pedagogies. Since launching in 2021, we have developed a wide variety of programs, including pairing artists and scientists in residencies to explore the potential for academic art-science collaborations. Artists provide new ways of imagining research and knowledge exchange as a dimensional counterpart to the research carried out at Blusson QMI. Through the development of conversation programs and panel series in tandem with the creation of an ongoing artist residency, Ars Scientia addresses questions of pedagogical outcomes, interdisciplinary research and the emergent interstices of art and science.
Caroline Delétoille
Artist
Caroline Delétoille is a Paris-based visual artist with a previous academic foray into mathematics. Her work interrogates questions concerned with memory, the ordinary and dreams. Though her practice is focused largely on painting and photography, her writing is central to the search for pictoriality and narration. Delétoille’s work has been exhibited in France and Spain. She is currently developing an exhibition with Musée Maison Poincaré in collaboration with the Kastler Brassel Laboratory and Quantum Studio.
Programme de résidence Arts & Sciences « Quantum Studio »
Caroline Delétoille est la nouvelle lauréate du programme de résidence Arts & Sciences « Quantum Studio », un programme créée par nos services avec nos partenaires de l’institut canadien Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute et la galerie d’art vancouvéroise Morris & Helen Belkin Art Gallery de l’Université de Colombie-Britannique. Caroline Delétoille succède à Javiera Tejerina. L’artiste viendra à Vancouver du 14 octobre au 12 novembre, sur le campus de l’université.
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La résidence, ouverte à l’ensemble des pratiques artistiques, a pour but de rendre plus accessible le travail des chercheurs en sciences quantiques (physique quantique, informatique quantique, physique de l’infiniment petit, sciences des matériaux, physique fondamentale) par le biais de l’art ; les échanges entre scientifiques et artistes sont au coeur de cette résidence.
Nos partenaires offriront à l’artiste un espace de réflexion dans lequel elle pourra se réunir avec les chercheurs, échanger sur leurs pratiques, apprendre de leurs travaux respectifs réfléchir ensemble à un projet créatif, à la croisée des arts et des sciences.
Le travail final de l’artiste sera donc un rendu, une mise en avant du travail des chercheurs. En fin de résidence, des séminaires et évènements publics co-organisés avec l’institut et la galerie sont prévus.
Caroline Delétoille
Biographie de l’artiste :
Mon travail est une recherche constante du souvenir, une documentation de l’ordinaire. En 2019, j’apprends par un coup de téléphone que la maison de famille a été vidée la veille et son contenu jeté. De là s’amorce chez moi une interrogation sur les souvenirs, leur développement et leur importance, dans une exploration plastique des traces de la mémoire.
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Qu’elle soit vraie ou fausse, l’histoire se raconte. Partant d’images d’archives, les photographies sont les pièces à convictions d’une enquête à mener. Mes peintures font un pas de côté avec la réalité, l’espace pictural devient un terrain de jeu. Les teintes sont franches, vives, dans une atmosphère saturée de verts et de jaunes. La couleur arrive sur le regardeur, je veux qu’elle l’enveloppe, lui tombe dessus. Des plans superposés en aplats structurent la composition et viennent déjouer les lignes de fuite. La perspective contribue ainsi à nous déséquilibrer, elle attire dans un décor ornemental sans profondeur de champ. Les motifs envahissent l’espace, les objets sortent de la toile, les ombres peuvent prendre des formes étranges, presque oniriques. À mesure que les repères rationnels sont perturbés, l’imagination s’active.
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Mes peintures parlent d’une mémoire collective et individuelle à partir de scènes intimes et familières telles que le quotidien de l’enfance, mon propre vécu et des photos de famille. J’aime expérimenter la matière à travers les techniques (huile, sérigraphie, monotype, acrylique, pastels…), dans l’esprit des courants des arts décoratifs.
The English language version posted by the Consulate is a rough summary and not a translation of their French language notice but both versions have the same embedded images.
Quantum Studio
I did a little digging to find out more about this Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute (Blusson QMI) and Morris and Helen Belkin Gallery (the Belkin), both at UBC, in partnership with The Embassy of France in Canada and their art/sci residency, known as the Quantum Studio.
UBC’s Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute (Blusson QMI) and Morris and Helen Belkin Gallery (the Belkin), in partnership with The Embassy of France in Canada, are delighted to announce Javiera Tejerina-Risso as the artist-in-residence for the Quantum Studio Art & Science Residency taking place in November 2023 at UBC Vancouver.
Javiera is a multidisciplinary French-Chilean artist from Marseille, France. Having worked in art and science for more than 15 years, she has developed a collaborative approach in her creative practice enabling her to work with researchers and include their vocabulary, concepts and areas of study in her creative work.
The Quantum Studio residency aims to build exchanges between art and quantum science immersed at the renowned UBC campus and in the rich local artistic ecosystem. The artist receives a €2,000 grant and paid accommodation during the residency.
Blusson QMI and the Belkin will provide the selected artist with a space in which the artist and researchers will be able to connect, discuss their projects, and learn from one another to create a project at the junction between art and science.
The scientific topics to be explored during this residency include:
Fundamental concepts: quantum mechanics, light-
Matter and materials: low-dimensional materials, organic and optoelectronic materials, superconductors, atomic structures (2D, 3D)
The Residency is part of a larger program of residencies initiated by the Embassy of France in West Canada. Other laureates will also be present in Vancouver in the fall of 2023 as part of the curatorial residency of the Embassy’s XR Fall program [extended reality], which focuses on immersive artistic creations. [emphasis mine]
Blusson QMI and the Belkin are the founding members of Ars Scientia, an interdisciplinary program aimed at creating synergies between scientists and artists in BC. At the intersection of arts and science, Ars (skill, technique, craft) Scientia (knowledge, experience, application) presents an opportunity to foster new modes of knowledge exchange intended to invigorate art, science, and pedagogy in search of profound exchange and collaborative research outcomes.
In 2023, the French Embassy in Canada, in partnership with the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute (QMI) and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery at the University of British Columbia (UBC), launched the Arts-Sciences Residency Program “Quantum Studio” in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
In 2024, a new edition of this artist residency will take place from October 14 to November 12 at UBC Blusson QMI in Vancouver. The program accepts applications from French artists exploring the intersections between the arts and sciences. Applications are now open and will close on May 26, 2024, at 11:59pm Paris time [May 26, 2024, at 2:59pm (PT)].
Open to all artistic practices, the residency seeks to build exchanges between the arts and the quantum sciences (quantum physics, quantum computing, physics of the infinitely small, materials science, fundamental physics).
The Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery will provide the selected artist with a space in which artists and researchers can meet, discuss their practices, learn from each other and reflect together on a creative project at the crossroads of the arts and sciences.
Prior to the residency in Vancouver, several online meetings will be organized to establish and maintain initial contact between the winning artist in France and the host team (institutions and scientists) in Vancouver.
About the residency
Objectives
Foster or consolidate a creative project.
Share their work at arts and science seminars co-organized with the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute and the Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery.
Encourage discovery of Western Canada’s scientific and artistic ecosystem, as well as forming collaborations.
Advantages
4 weeks of residence in Vancouver
Accommodation on the UBC campus and a working office at the Stewart Blusson Quantum Matter Institute
Round-trip airfare from France to Vancouver
A €2,000 residency grant (corresponding to per diem and participation in three half-day lectures/master classes during the residency)
Networking and connections with the local ecosystem
Participation in events in British Columbia during the residency.
Eligibility
Artist carrying an artistic project in writing or development
At least 18 years old
Resident in France for at least 5 years
Speaking English
Ideally, justifying first experiences of creation mixing arts and sciences (applications from artists who have already worked or are working in connection with physical sciences will be appreciated).
This program is open to artistic practices in all their diversity (writing, visual and plastic arts, digital arts, design, dance, performance, immersive realities, sound creation, etc.).
Figure 2: a) “Neoplastic” diagram of the porphyrin core of the classic nonplanar 2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octabromo-5,10,15,20-tetraphenylporphyrin (CCDC: RONROB), alongside two representations of this same molecule—b) the crystal structure thermal ellipsoid plot and (c) skeletal model.28 This porphyrin shape is primarily saddled and a little ruffled, resulting in S4 symmetry … [downloaded from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ange.202403754]
A July 12, 2024 news item on ScienceDaily describes a fascinating computer program developed by scientists at Trinity College Dublin,
Scientists from Trinity College Dublin have created a computer program that “paints” the structure of molecules in the style of famous Dutch artist, Piet Mondrian, whose beautiful artworks will be instantly recognizable to many.
Mondrian’s style, whereby he used blocks of primary colors separated by lines of various widths on a white background, has been extensively copied or used as an inspiration in modern culture. But his deceptively simple artworks have also fascinated scientists for decades, finding niche applications in mathematics and statistics.
And now, researchers from the School of Chemistry are opening eyes and minds to the beauty of molecular structure, as well as posing new questions about the form and function of the molecules themselves.
Their computer program, which can be accessed at http://www.sengegroup.eu/nsd, produces a Mondrianesque plot of any molecule. It does so by following an artistic algorithm that marries the laws of chemistry that describe the 3D structure of a molecule based on its components with the 2D style of one of the most influential painters of the Modern era.
For the scientist, it helps to rapidly assess and demonstrate molecular symmetry, allowing for deeper insights than would emerge from traditional representations. And for the artist, it provides a visually pleasing image of contrasting interpretations of symmetry, hopefully providing inspiration for the incorporation of scientific ideas into work.
Mathias O Senge, Professor of Organic Chemistry in Trinity and Hans Fischer Senior Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study of TU Munich [Technische Universität München or Technical University of Munich] is the senior author of a just-published article in the leading international journal, Angewandte Chemie, in which this creation is shared with the world. He said:
“For some years we have been working on this project, initially for fun, to output the structure of a molecule in an artistically pleasing manner as a painting in the style of Mondrian. The ‘paintings’ obtained are unique for each molecule and juxtapose what Mondrian and others aimed to do with the De Stijl artistic movement.
“Symmetry and shape are essential aspects of molecular structure and how we interpret molecules and their properties, but very often relationships between chemical structure and derived values are obscured. Taking our inspiration from Mondrian’s Compositions, we have depicted the symmetry information encoded within 3D data as blocks of colour, to show clearly how chemical arguments may contribute to symmetry.”
Christopher Kingsbury, postdoctoral researcher in TBSI, who conceived the project, is first author of the journal article. He said: “In chemistry, it is useful to have a universal way of displaying molecular structure, so as to help ‘blueprint’ how a molecule is likely to behave in different environments and how it may react and change shape when in the presence of other molecules. But a certain amount of nuance is inevitably lost.
“This concept of increasing abstraction by removing minor details and trying to present a general form is mimicked by the early work of Mondrian and in some senses this is what scientists intuitively do when reducing complex phenomena to a ‘simpler truth’. Thanks to our new approach very complex science is fed through an artistic lens, which might make it more accessible to a wider range of people.”
In recent years Professor Senge and his team have greatly enhanced our understanding of porphyrins, a unique class of intensely coloured pigments – also known as the “colours of life”. In one piece of work they created a suite of new biological sensors by chemically re-engineering these pigments to act like tiny Venus flytraps and grab specific molecules, such as pollutants. And now the new direction, in which science and art collide, may further develop our understanding of how porphyrins work.
“Great art gives us a new perspective on the world,” added Prof. Senge. “As a pastiche, this art may allow us to look at familiar molecules, such as porphyrins, in a new light, and help us to better understand how their shape and properties are intertwined. More generally, we believe that contemporary initiatives in ‘Art and Science’ require a transformative break of discipline boundaries and merger to ‘ArtScience’. There is a subtle interplay between science and art and mixing of both aspects in our respective fields of endeavour and this should be a focus for future developments in both areas.”
I am bookending May 2024 with announcements from Ingenium (Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation) the parent organization for Canada Agriculture and Food Museum, Canada Science and Technology Museum, and Canada Aviation and Space Museum, all located in Ottawa, Ontario. My May 2, 2024 posting kicked the month off with this “Canada Science and Technology Museum opens “Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste” or “Oh merde! Repensons les déchets humains” exhibition on May 10, 2024.”
This May 30, 2024 Ingenium newsletter (received via email) lays out what you can expect at the museums during June 2024, should you be visiting Ottawa,
Symbiotic: Merging art and science
The Canada Agriculture and Food Museum is proud to present its newest exhibition, Symbiotic, in partnership with SPAO: Photographic Arts Centre. Part science fiction, part sublime discovery, this photo-based exhibition includes artists from across Canada who use emerging technologies and photographic techniques as a muse for their art.
The exhibition is spread across two sites – the museum and the SPAO Centre Gallery, located at 77 Pamilla Street in Ottawa. The photographs at the museum are inspired by plants and insects, while those at the gallery use a broad range of influences to reinterpret the world around them.
Join the Canada Science and Technology Museum on June 13 [2024] from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for a special water ceremony led by Grandmother Irene, dedicated to honouring our Indigenous Water Operators and Water Keepers. This event will focus on the vital importance of water in our lives and cultures, celebrating those who safeguard this essential resource for future generations.
On June 26 [2024] from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum is hosting Welcome Wednesdays, providing free parking and admission to the public. This month’s theme is Planting Roots, and the museum invites you to take part in interactive activities in the Soil Lab, stroll through the Soil Lab Garden, and taste delicious root vegetables in the Demonstration Kitchen. Of course, the full museum will also be open to explore!
Honouring the 2SLGBTQ+ community
As Pride Month approaches, we are pleased to feature the stories of two 2SLGBTQ+ service members in the Royal Canadian Air Force in our newest exhibition, The Cold War. This exhibition highlights the personal experiences of these individuals who experienced The Purge in which the Government attempted to remove members of this community from the civil service and military. Through their narratives, we honor their service and celebrate their courage and resilience.
Our newest exhibition – Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste – has inspiring and educational games all about human waste at the Canada Science and Technology Museum! From how our waste is sorted to how much time we spend on the toilet in a lifetime, can you outsmart your friends and family during the Caca Quiz? Don’t forget to stop by the boutique for hilarious – and dare we say cute! – poop-themed items for sale
Given that it was Earth Day yesterday (April 22, 2024), this seems like a good second act. From an April 18, 2024 news item on phys.org,
A geo-environmental scientist from Japan has composed a string quartet using sonified climate data. The 6-minute-long composition—titled “String Quartet No. 1 “Polar Energy Budget”—is based on over 30 years of satellite-collected climate data from the Arctic and Antarctic and aims to garner attention on how climate is driven by the input and output of energy at the poles.
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This is a little longer video than I usually like to embed here at 6 mins. 29 secs. and it is one of the more aesthetically pleasing I’ve heard,
An April 18, 2024 Cell Press press release, which originated the news item, describes the data sonification work and its application to art/science projects, Note: A link has been removed,
“I strongly hope that this manuscript marks a significant turning point, transitioning from an era where only scientists handle data to one where artists can freely leverage data to craft their works,” writes author and composer Hiroto Nagai, a geo-environmental scientist at Rissho University.
Scientist-composer Hiroto Nagai asserts that music, as opposed to sound, evokes an emotional response and posits that “musification” (as opposed to sonification) of data requires some intervention by the composer to build tension and add dynamics. For this reason, Nagai was more liberal in adding a “human touch” compared to previous data-based musical compositions, aiming to meld sonification with traditional music composition.
“As a fundamental principle in music composition, it is necessary to combine temporal sequences from tension-building to resolution in various scales, from harmonic progressions to entire movements,” Nagai writes. “So far, there haven’t been published attempts and open discussion on sonification-based music composition, nor attempts to demonstrate the methodology required to intentionally affect the audience’s emotions with an artistic piece.”
To do this, he first used a program to sonify environmental data by assigning sounds to different data values. The publicly available data was collected from four polar locations between 1982 and 2022: an ice-core drilling site in the Greenland ice sheet, a satellite station in Norway’s Svalbard archipelago, and two Japanese-owned research stations in the Antarctic (Showa Station and Dome Fuji Station). For each of the sites, Nagai used data on monthly measurements of short- and longwave radiation, precipitation, surface temperature, and cloud thickness.
In the next step, he transformed this collection of sounds into a musical composition to be played by two violins, a viola, and a cello. This process involved many steps, including manipulating the pitch of different datapoints and assigning sections of data to the different instruments, overlaying passages created from different data, and introducing musical playing techniques such as pizzicato and staccato. Nagai also intervened in more artistic ways by introducing rhythm, deliberately removing certain sounds, and introducing handwritten (non-data derived) parts into the composition.
The quartet’s premiere live performance was shared at Waseda University in Tokyo in March 2023 followed by a panel discussion. A filmed performance of the piece by PRT Quartet, a Japanese professional string quartet, was also released on YouTube in March 2023.
“Upon listening, my initial reaction was like, ‘What is this?’ It felt like a typical contemporary piece,” said Haruka Sakuma, the professional violinist who performed 2nd violin. “The flow of the music was a bit hard to memorize quickly, and it was quite challenging at first.”
Nagai says that, in contrast to graphical representations of data, music elicits emotion before intellectual curiosity and suggests that using graphical and music representations of data in conjunction might be even more powerful.
“It grabs the audiences’ attention forcefully, while graphical representations require active and conscious recognition instead,” Nagai writes. “This reveals the potential for outreach in the Earth sciences through music.”
