STEAM Workshops
CO-CREATION
TAILORED RESIDENCIES
HOW TO A-I-R
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As innovation cycles in R&D get ever shorter and more complex, the capability of moving successfully among a variety of different solution contexts is a key competence. Artist-in-residence programs in tech corporations or scientific organizations are of increasing importance. The workshop leads to a fruitful project design, creating a context for artists, engineers, and scientists, to build the foundation of a valuable outcome.
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STEAM IMAGING
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Bianka Hofmann; Linking Science and Technology with Arts and the Next Generation: The STEAM Imaging Experimental Artist Residency, A Case Study. Leonardo 2021; 54 (2): 185–190. DOI:10.1162/leon_a_01792
LINKING SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY WITH THE ARTS AND THE NEXT GENERATION
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Example: Design and lead of the artist-in-residency program “STEAM Imaging” as a conceptual framework for fostering meaningful cooperative engagement of scientists, school students, and artists to break down disciplinary boundaries and explore flexible forms of learning and cooperation, realized together with the mathematician Sabrina Haase, starting in 2017. In this interview I take stock.
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Examples of curated and mentored residencies:
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Resident: Eli Joteva (US), 2020
Media artist Eli Joteva created a remarkable installation within her residency, "STEAM Imaging III." To obtain the material for her digital artwork, the Bulgarian lay down in an MRI scanner for hours. The result: a digital installation called “IntraBeing.“ It shows oversized organs and highly complex webs of nerves that move meditatively and mysteriously right before the viewer's eyes.
STEAM Imaging III was jointly hosted by Fraunhofer MEVIS and Ars Electronica, in collaboration with the
International Fraunhofer Talent School Bremen and the UCLA ArtSci Center.
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Resident: Yen Tzu Chang (TW), 2017
"STEAM Imaging I” was the pilot residency program I created for Fraunhofer MEVIS. STEAM stands for the connection of science, technology, and mathematics with the world of art. During her stay, Yen Tzu Chang, specializing in experimental sound performances and creating customized electronic instruments, learned a software platform for medical imaging development (MeVisLab). She processed her own medical image data and created movies and a 3D model for her performance, "Whose Scalpel."
STEAM imaging was an artist residency hosted by Fraunhofer MEVIS, Ars Electronica in Linz, in collaboration
with the International Fraunhofer Talent School Bremen within the European Digital Art and Science Network.
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SCIENCE MEETS FICTION
WORKSHOPS FOR (FUTURE) FILMMAKERS AND SCIENTISTS —
A new approach to explore the social implications and ethical consequences of R&D
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Example: Design and curation for Fraunhofer MEVIS, jointly with ifs internationale filmschule köln, and the Foundation for STEM-Entertainment-Education-Excellence (MINTEEE) of a workshop series, including the two-day event in Cologne, dedicated to the topic “Artificial Intelligence in Fiction and Reality.” ifs students received an introduction to the topic of “Science in Fiction,” followed by a half-day hands-on workshop on “How to Train an AI” by Fraunhofer MEVIS scientists. The workshop concluded with a joint discussion on the dramaturgical potential and socially relevant implications of AI in medicine. Based on this, the in-depth ideation Workshop “Finding Stories that Matter” took place.
Image: Presentation at the Science Meets Fiction Workshop, Copyright Fraunhofer MEVIS
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NEW MEDIA THEATER WORK: THE ETERNAL ZOO
ARTWORK DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOPS
Exploring and creating in artistic teams
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Example: Workshop Design & Facilitation for The Eternal Zoo
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Design and facilitation of a multidisciplinary, intercultural STEAM workshop to support the development of The Eternal Zoo, a transdisciplinary performance project by artistic director Yen Tzu Chang. The workshop was structured to tackle critical questions about the future of zoos, including their ethical, ecological, and societal roles.
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Participants from diverse disciplines, including choreographers, dancers, musicians, researchers, producers, and an eco-educator, engaged in collaborative discussions, scenario-building, and research-based exploration. The workshop examined trends, drivers, and possible futures for zoos, considering post-captive models, environmental hubs, and the human-animal relationship in the context of conservation and public engagement.
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The STEAM workshop allowed for integration of research, creative practice, and interdisciplinary collaboration. By structuring inquiry around complex societal and ecological questions, it enables teams to generate informed, innovative concepts that directly inform artistic and educational projects.
Image: The Eternal Zoo STEM Workshop
NEW PATHWAY IN COMMUNICATING SCIENCE
SCIENCE & ART COMMUNICATIONS
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Example: Science & Art Producer and Project Developer of the immersive installation “Quantum Logos” (vision serpent) by Mark Chavez & Ina Conradi at the Ars Electronica Festival 2019. Impulse talk for the discussion within the Networking Event Entanglement Ongoing on new pathways in communicating quantum technology.
Image: Presentation at the Entanglement Ongoing event
