Colliding Epistemes: Science for Art’s sake?

After almost two years of Art & Science residencies, Bozar Centre for Fine Arts (Brussels) presents the artistic results (drawings, paintings, video artworks, experimental ceramics...) of a collaborative process in which science and tech laboratories have opened up to artistic invention to provide unconventional responses to planetary challenges.

The boundaries between science and art have been completely destabilized by the Anthropocene—the most recent period in Earth’s history, when human activity started to have a significant impact on the planet’s climate and ecosystems.

From May 6 to June 19, 2022, Bozar is bringing together in its Bozar Lab artworks that emerged from a collaborative process in which science and tech laboratories have opened up to artistic invention. The impulse for such collaborations resides in the here and now of climate breakdown and biodiversity collapse, a planetary crisis.

The exhibition Colliding Epistemes: Science for Art’s sake?, curated by Maja and Reuben Fowkes, investigates the consequences of bringing artistic positions and scientific expertise into close proximity, exploring the friction that arises from the collision of disciplines, methodologies and mindsets. The diversity of approaches in this exhibition reflects the eclectic palette of scientific expertise in the Studiotopia project, from oncology and psychology to chemistry and biology. The results? They are equally wide-ranging: from drawings and paintings, to video artworks and experimental ceramics.

Do you want to make the most of your visit? Every Saturday from 2–5pm, our mediators are there to answer all your questions in the exhibition. 

Curators
Maja and Reuben Fowkes (London, UK) are founders of the Translocal Institute for Contemporary Art, co-directors of the Postsocialist Art Centre (PACT) at University College London and authors of Art and Climate Change (Thames & Hudson, 2022).

Studiotopia artists and scientists
Sandra Lorenzi & Jean-Christophe Marine, Kuang-Yi Ku & Sofie Goormachtig, Hypercomf & Markos K. Digenis, 3 137 & Dr. Audrey-Flore Ngomsik, Alexandra Pirici & Paco Calvo, Ciprian Mureşan & Sanneke Stigter—Sven Dupré, Christiaan Zwanikken & Emmanuel Grimaud—Dm Hoyt, Dmitry Gelfand—Evelina Domnitch & Florian Schreck—Guillaume Schweicher, Oswaldo Maciá & Chris Bean—Emilia Leszkowicz, Maja Smrekar & Jonas Jørgensen, Kat Austen & Indre Žliobaitė—Laurence Gill, Voldemārs Johansons & Hugo Thienpont—Alexander Kish—Antoine Reserbat-Plantey, Siobhán McDonald & Chris Bean—Arwyn Jones—Emily Shuckburgh.

About Studiotopia: Art meets Science in the Anthropocene
This exhibition is the culmination of 13 art-science collaborative residencies organised within the framework of Studiotopia: Art meets Science in the Anthropocene (2019-2022), an initiative co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, and hosted by eight cultural institutions across Europe. Working alongside Ars Electronica in Linz, GLUON in Brussels, LABoral in Gijon, Onassis Stegi in Athens and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the venues for the three iterations of the exhibition are Laznia Centre for Contemporary Art in Gdansk, the Centre for Fine Arts (Bozar) in Brussels and Cluj Cultural Centre in Cluj.

The Studiotopia programme aims to increase collaborations between cultural and research institutions, academia, innovation centres, creatives and citizens. Studiotopia encourages renowned and emerging contemporary visual artists to host a scientist or researcher in the independent & inspiring environment of their studios, reversing the usual approach whereby artists are invited to work at R&D departments of universities or companies.

Throughout the duration of this initiative (2019-2022), Studiotopia has proposed a vast programme of activities across the partnering institutions: residencies, exhibitions, pop-up labs, workshops and talks.

Press contact: Alexia Mangelinckx, Communication and Press Officer, Bozar Arts, Science & Technology: alexia.mangelinckx [​at​] bozar.be
Press materials (texts and images for download)