[Yasmin_discussions] Doing and Studying International Collaboration in the Sciences, Arts and the Humanities

Hello all,

I have been a bit slow to post as I had to do some admin updates on my
subscription, but all working now - (I hope).

ANAT has been involved in art/science research collaboration for over ten
years, five of which as a part of the Synapse initiative between ANAT and
the Australia Council for the Arts.

Recently ANAT and the Australia Council for the Arts got together those who
have been involved in the residencies to initiate, what we hope, will be a
research process that will tell us much more about these collaborations and
also initiate the building of a strong art/science community. The discussion
we had was wide ranging, but one point that really struck me was the concept
that we need to redefine what is an artistic career and for that matter what
is a science career. The inherent interdisciplinary nature of successful art
science collaboration creates a different discipline and it seems worth, as
we enter this dialogue, to suspend what we expect from these separate areas
and envision what the new practice might be. This will mean both the arts
and science each being willing to give some of their turf.

To pick on robotics research as an example where the technology has gone
beyond the technical basics to where deeper questions of what it is to be
human need to be answered if the technology is to advance. The research is
no longer pure technology research, it is about interfaces with people -
where engineering, psychology, aesthetics and art meet. From an arts
perspective robotics is a broad and responsive creative dialogue involving
what it means to be human now and into the future. This is an artistic
practice not destined for the gallery, but rather destined to have a much
broader impact on how we live.

So we may have students who want to have a career in robotics so they study
art and students interested in art studying robotics - the point being the
interdisciplinary nature that will be needed for successful creative,
cultural and research out comes, will become the same. In the arts we still
suffer under the weighty concept of the heroic individual as artist, when at
the same time, we are moving into an era that relies increasingly on
interdisciplinary collaboration where the results will be more diffuse and
more difficult to attribute to a single creator.

Gavin Artz | CEO

Australian Network for Art and Technology [ANAT]
e: ceo@anat.org.au | ph: 61 8 8231 9037
www.anat.org.au | www.filter.org.au | www.synapse.net.au
Twitter: __ANAT | Facebook: http://bit.ly/bF9fXl

The Australian Network for Art and Technology (ANAT) is supported by the
Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian, State and
Territory Governments; the Australian Government through the Australia
Council, its arts funding and advisory body, and the South Australian
Government through Arts SA.

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Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

OK...Roger volunteered a topic I suggested for this and I've been tied up
with some other things until now - the focus of this was originally on
collaboration, presumably large-scale or international in scope, within the
social science, humanities, arts or "natural sciences"...not necessarily
between arts and sciences which, as many have noted, already has a strong
and notable record for collaboration.

On 5/31/10 1:48 PM, "Simon Biggs" <s.biggs@eca.ac.uk> wrote:

> I have also been too busy to chip in...but the following might be of
> interest:
>
> http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/leon.2006.39.5.441
>
> and:
>
> http://writing-research.nl/?q=node/78
>
> Best
>
> Simon
>
>
> Simon Biggs
> s.biggs@eca.ac.uk simon@littlepig.org.uk Skype: simonbiggsuk
> http://www.littlepig.org.uk/
> Research Professor edinburgh college of art http://www.eca.ac.uk/
> Creative Interdisciplinary Research into CoLlaborative Environments
> http://www.eca.ac.uk/circle/
> Electronic Literature as a Model of Creativity and Innovation in Practice
> http://www.elmcip.net/
> Centre for Film, Performance and Media Arts
> http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/film-performance-media-arts
>
>
>
> From: Ernest <ernest@ernestedmonds.com>
> Reply-To: YASMIN DISCUSSIONS <yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr>
> Date: Mon, 31 May 2010 01:31:17 +0100
> To: YASMIN DISCUSSIONS <yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr>
> Subject: Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the
> Sciences and Humanities
>
> Like others, I have been very slow to join the discussion - too busy,
> my apologies.
>
> [Re a taxonomy - see Candy and Edmonds below]
>
> I will try to make a quick summary.
>
> An overview of what we know about some aspects can be see at
> http://www.leonardo-transactions.com/announcements/?page=5
> in the article "How Artists Fit Into the Research Process" which
> makes the following recommendations:-
> 1. Artists should agree to record their creative process, including
> failures.
>
> 2. Each project should have multiple planned outputs so that
> scientific and artistic goals are visibly achieved.
>
> 3. Observation and evaluation of the collaboration process should be
> explicitly included in the outputs.
>
> 4. New relationships and extended networks are common benefits of long-
> term commitments.
>
> 5. Team selection and team building are important. It cannot be
> assumed that a good artist and a good scientist will necessarily form
> a productive team.
>
> 6. Where artworks produced are interactive, provision should be made
> to undertake Obeta-testing¹ with audiences in realistic contexts.
>
> The other key issue is control/partnership/authorship. Different
> models are used. The artist in control is the old way of doing things.
> If the artist does not program this doesn't always seem to work all
> that well because they may not understand the medium enough.
> Partnerships can be better in that respect, but then aesthetic as well
> technical decisions are shared - so some people go for team authorship.
>
> We have published quite a bit on this subject.
> See, for example:-
> Candy, L and Edmonds, E. A. "Explorations in Art and Technology".
> Springer-Verlag, London. 2002.
> Edmonds, E. A., Weakley, A. J., Candy, L., Fell, M. J., Knott, R. P.
> and Pauletto, S. "The Studio as Laboratory: Combining Creative
> Practice and Digital Technology Research". IJHCS vol. 63, issue 4-5,
> October 2005. pp452-481.
> Edmonds, E., A. Bilda, Z. & Muller, L. (2009) Artist, evaluator and
> curator: three viewpoints on interactive art, evaluation and audience
> experience. Digital Creativity, 20, 141 - 151.
> and Yun Zhang's Phd - "Investigating collaboration in art and
> technology" at:-
> http://linus.lib.uts.edu.au/search~S3?/c700.105+ZHAN/
> c700.105+zhan/-3%2C-1%2C0%2CE/frameset&FF=c700.105+zhan&1%2C1%2C
>
> Collaboration is a central part of current art practice and, indeed,
> is at the core of much funding. See the Welcome Trust in the UK,
> Synapse from the Australian Council and ARC (in Australia), CreateIT
> from NSF in the USA etc.
>
> A quick scan of all of the above will show that the collaborations are
> often international - so I did not comment on that aspect.
>
> Ernest
>
>
> On 29/05/2010, at 11:36 PM, Paul Brown wrote:
>
>>
>> On 29/05/2010, at 11:07 PM, Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) wrote:
>>
>>> Has anyone made a taxonomy of different types of collaboration?
>>>
>>
>> In my talks I have broken art-science collaborations into three
>> broad categories:
>>
>> 1. Art appropriates science - an artist takes an scientific idea
>> and bases an artwork on it. Although scientists may collaborate
>> they do not directly benefit (perhaps some good PR) and, if the work
>> is critical they may suffer (bad PR).
>>
>> 2. Science appropriate arts - for eg. artists doing scientific
>> visualisation. This can be a useful money earner for an artist but
>> they must attenuate their own creative needs to the intentions of
>> the science.
>>
>> 3. True collaboration - all the participant have an equal ownership
>> in a project and all contribute directly towards and benefit
>> directly from it. These kind of collaborations may not be project
>> focussed and may be ongoing. This is a true interdisciplinary
>> collaboration and a good example is the number of scientific centres
>> who have regular or ongoing artists-in-residence because they have
>> recognised the value of a different perspective from their own.
>>
>> There is good work to be seen in all of these areas though my
>> preference as I have got older is for the latter.
>>
>> Best
>> Paul
>>
>> ====
>> Paul Brown - based in OZ April to November 2010
>> mailto:paul@paul-brown.com == http://www.paul-brown.com
>> OZ Landline +61 (0)7 3391 0094 == USA fax +1 309 216 9900
>> OZ Mobile +61 (0)419 72 74 85 == Skype paul-g-brown
>> ====
>> Visiting Professor - Sussex University
>> http://www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/ccnr/research/creativity.html
>> ====
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Yasmin_discussions mailing list
>> Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
>> http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions
>>
>> Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin
>>
>> HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to
>> subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-
>> mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down
>> the page.
>>
>> HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and
>> enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if
>> asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear
>> ("options page").
>>
>> HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the
>> "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.
>
> __________________________
> http://www.ernestedmonds.com
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Yasmin_discussions mailing list
> Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
> http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions
>
> Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin
>
> HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In
> the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and
> password in the fields found further down the page.
>
> HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your
> e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the
> unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").
>
> HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set
> Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.
>
>
> Edinburgh College of Art (eca) is a charity registered in Scotland, number
> SC009201
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Yasmin_discussions mailing list
> Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
> http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions
>
> Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin
>
> HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In
> the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and
> password in the fields found further down the page.
>
> HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your
> e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the
> unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").
>
> HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set Digest
> Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

_______________________________________________
Yasmin_discussions mailing list
Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions

Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down the page.

HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").

HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

I have also been too busy to chip in...but the following might be of
interest:

http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/leon.2006.39.5.441

and:

http://writing-research.nl/?q=node/78

Best

Simon

Simon Biggs
s.biggs@eca.ac.uk simon@littlepig.org.uk Skype: simonbiggsuk
http://www.littlepig.org.uk/
Research Professor edinburgh college of art http://www.eca.ac.uk/
Creative Interdisciplinary Research into CoLlaborative Environments
http://www.eca.ac.uk/circle/
Electronic Literature as a Model of Creativity and Innovation in Practice
http://www.elmcip.net/
Centre for Film, Performance and Media Arts
http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/film-performance-media-arts

From: Ernest <ernest@ernestedmonds.com>
Reply-To: YASMIN DISCUSSIONS <yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr>
Date: Mon, 31 May 2010 01:31:17 +0100
To: YASMIN DISCUSSIONS <yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr>
Subject: Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the
Sciences and Humanities

Like others, I have been very slow to join the discussion - too busy,
my apologies.

[Re a taxonomy - see Candy and Edmonds below]

I will try to make a quick summary.

An overview of what we know about some aspects can be see at
http://www.leonardo-transactions.com/announcements/?page=5
in the article "How Artists Fit Into the Research Process" which
makes the following recommendations:-
1. Artists should agree to record their creative process, including
failures.

2. Each project should have multiple planned outputs so that
scientific and artistic goals are visibly achieved.

3. Observation and evaluation of the collaboration process should be
explicitly included in the outputs.

4. New relationships and extended networks are common benefits of long-
term commitments.

5. Team selection and team building are important. It cannot be
assumed that a good artist and a good scientist will necessarily form
a productive team.

6. Where artworks produced are interactive, provision should be made
to undertake Obeta-testing¹ with audiences in realistic contexts.

The other key issue is control/partnership/authorship. Different
models are used. The artist in control is the old way of doing things.
If the artist does not program this doesn't always seem to work all
that well because they may not understand the medium enough.
Partnerships can be better in that respect, but then aesthetic as well
technical decisions are shared - so some people go for team authorship.

We have published quite a bit on this subject.
See, for example:-
Candy, L and Edmonds, E. A. "Explorations in Art and Technology".
Springer-Verlag, London. 2002.
Edmonds, E. A., Weakley, A. J., Candy, L., Fell, M. J., Knott, R. P.
and Pauletto, S. "The Studio as Laboratory: Combining Creative
Practice and Digital Technology Research". IJHCS vol. 63, issue 4-5,
October 2005. pp452-481.
Edmonds, E., A. Bilda, Z. & Muller, L. (2009) Artist, evaluator and
curator: three viewpoints on interactive art, evaluation and audience
experience. Digital Creativity, 20, 141 - 151.
and Yun Zhang's Phd - "Investigating collaboration in art and
technology" at:-
http://linus.lib.uts.edu.au/search~S3?/c700.105+ZHAN/
c700.105+zhan/-3%2C-1%2C0%2CE/frameset&FF=c700.105+zhan&1%2C1%2C

Collaboration is a central part of current art practice and, indeed,
is at the core of much funding. See the Welcome Trust in the UK,
Synapse from the Australian Council and ARC (in Australia), CreateIT
from NSF in the USA etc.

A quick scan of all of the above will show that the collaborations are
often international - so I did not comment on that aspect.

Ernest

On 29/05/2010, at 11:36 PM, Paul Brown wrote:

>
> On 29/05/2010, at 11:07 PM, Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) wrote:
>
>> Has anyone made a taxonomy of different types of collaboration?
>>
>
> In my talks I have broken art-science collaborations into three
> broad categories:
>
> 1. Art appropriates science - an artist takes an scientific idea
> and bases an artwork on it. Although scientists may collaborate
> they do not directly benefit (perhaps some good PR) and, if the work
> is critical they may suffer (bad PR).
>
> 2. Science appropriate arts - for eg. artists doing scientific
> visualisation. This can be a useful money earner for an artist but
> they must attenuate their own creative needs to the intentions of
> the science.
>
> 3. True collaboration - all the participant have an equal ownership
> in a project and all contribute directly towards and benefit
> directly from it. These kind of collaborations may not be project
> focussed and may be ongoing. This is a true interdisciplinary
> collaboration and a good example is the number of scientific centres
> who have regular or ongoing artists-in-residence because they have
> recognised the value of a different perspective from their own.
>
> There is good work to be seen in all of these areas though my
> preference as I have got older is for the latter.
>
> Best
> Paul
>
> ====
> Paul Brown - based in OZ April to November 2010
> mailto:paul@paul-brown.com == http://www.paul-brown.com
> OZ Landline +61 (0)7 3391 0094 == USA fax +1 309 216 9900
> OZ Mobile +61 (0)419 72 74 85 == Skype paul-g-brown
> ====
> Visiting Professor - Sussex University
> http://www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/ccnr/research/creativity.html
> ====
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Yasmin_discussions mailing list
> Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
> http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions
>
> Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin
>
> HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to
> subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-
> mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down
> the page.
>
> HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and
> enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if
> asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear
> ("options page").
>
> HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the
> "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

__________________________
http://www.ernestedmonds.com

_______________________________________________
Yasmin_discussions mailing list
Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions

Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In
the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and
password in the fields found further down the page.

HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your
e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the
unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").

HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set
Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

Edinburgh College of Art (eca) is a charity registered in Scotland, number SC009201

_______________________________________________
Yasmin_discussions mailing list
Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions

Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down the page.

HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").

HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

Like others, I have been very slow to join the discussion - too busy,
my apologies.

[Re a taxonomy - see Candy and Edmonds below]

I will try to make a quick summary.

An overview of what we know about some aspects can be see at http://www.leonardo-transactions.com/announcements/?page=5
in the article "How Artists Fit Into the Research Process" which
makes the following recommendations:-
1. Artists should agree to record their creative process, including
failures.

2. Each project should have multiple planned outputs so that
scientific and artistic goals are visibly achieved.

3. Observation and evaluation of the collaboration process should be
explicitly included in the outputs.

4. New relationships and extended networks are common benefits of long-
term commitments.

5. Team selection and team building are important. It cannot be
assumed that a good artist and a good scientist will necessarily form
a productive team.

6. Where artworks produced are interactive, provision should be made
to undertake 'beta-testing' with audiences in realistic contexts.

The other key issue is control/partnership/authorship. Different
models are used. The artist in control is the old way of doing things.
If the artist does not program this doesn't always seem to work all
that well because they may not understand the medium enough.
Partnerships can be better in that respect, but then aesthetic as well
technical decisions are shared - so some people go for team authorship.

We have published quite a bit on this subject.
See, for example:-
Candy, L and Edmonds, E. A. "Explorations in Art and Technology".
Springer-Verlag, London. 2002.
Edmonds, E. A., Weakley, A. J., Candy, L., Fell, M. J., Knott, R. P.
and Pauletto, S. "The Studio as Laboratory: Combining Creative
Practice and Digital Technology Research". IJHCS vol. 63, issue 4-5,
October 2005. pp452-481.
Edmonds, E., A. Bilda, Z. & Muller, L. (2009) Artist, evaluator and
curator: three viewpoints on interactive art, evaluation and audience
experience. Digital Creativity, 20, 141 - 151.
and Yun Zhang's Phd - "Investigating collaboration in art and
technology" at:-
http://linus.lib.uts.edu.au/search~S3?/c700.105+ZHAN/
c700.105+zhan/-3%2C-1%2C0%2CE/frameset&FF=c700.105+zhan&1%2C1%2C

Collaboration is a central part of current art practice and, indeed,
is at the core of much funding. See the Welcome Trust in the UK,
Synapse from the Australian Council and ARC (in Australia), CreateIT
from NSF in the USA etc.

A quick scan of all of the above will show that the collaborations are
often international - so I did not comment on that aspect.

Ernest

On 29/05/2010, at 11:36 PM, Paul Brown wrote:

>
> On 29/05/2010, at 11:07 PM, Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) wrote:
>
>> Has anyone made a taxonomy of different types of collaboration?
>>
>
> In my talks I have broken art-science collaborations into three
> broad categories:
>
> 1. Art appropriates science - an artist takes an scientific idea
> and bases an artwork on it. Although scientists may collaborate
> they do not directly benefit (perhaps some good PR) and, if the work
> is critical they may suffer (bad PR).
>
> 2. Science appropriate arts - for eg. artists doing scientific
> visualisation. This can be a useful money earner for an artist but
> they must attenuate their own creative needs to the intentions of
> the science.
>
> 3. True collaboration - all the participant have an equal ownership
> in a project and all contribute directly towards and benefit
> directly from it. These kind of collaborations may not be project
> focussed and may be ongoing. This is a true interdisciplinary
> collaboration and a good example is the number of scientific centres
> who have regular or ongoing artists-in-residence because they have
> recognised the value of a different perspective from their own.
>
> There is good work to be seen in all of these areas though my
> preference as I have got older is for the latter.
>
> Best
> Paul
>
> ====
> Paul Brown - based in OZ April to November 2010
> mailto:paul@paul-brown.com == http://www.paul-brown.com
> OZ Landline +61 (0)7 3391 0094 == USA fax +1 309 216 9900
> OZ Mobile +61 (0)419 72 74 85 == Skype paul-g-brown
> ====
> Visiting Professor - Sussex University
> http://www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/ccnr/research/creativity.html
> ====
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Yasmin_discussions mailing list
> Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
> http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions
>
> Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin
>
> HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to
> subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-
> mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down
> the page.
>
> HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and
> enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if
> asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear
> ("options page").
>
> HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the
> "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

__________________________
http://www.ernestedmonds.com

_______________________________________________
Yasmin_discussions mailing list
Yasmin_discussions@estia.media.uoa.gr
http://estia.media.uoa.gr/mailman/listinfo/yasmin_discussions

Yasmin URL: http://www.media.uoa.gr/yasmin

HOW TO SUBSCRIBE: click on the link to the list you wish to subscribe to. In the page that will appear ("info page"), enter e-mail address, name, and password in the fields found further down the page.

HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE: on the info page, scroll all the way down and enter your e-mail address in the last field. Enter password if asked. Click on the unsubscribe button on the page that will appear ("options page").

HOW TO ENABLE / DISABLE DIGEST MODE: in the options page, find the "Set Digest Mode" option and set it to either on or off.

Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

On 29/05/2010, at 11:07 PM, Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) wrote:

> Has anyone made a taxonomy of different types of collaboration?
>

In my talks I have broken art-science collaborations into three broad categories:

1. Art appropriates science - an artist takes an scientific idea and bases an artwork on it. Although scientists may collaborate they do not directly benefit (perhaps some good PR) and, if the work is critical they may suffer (bad PR).

2. Science appropriate arts - for eg. artists doing scientific visualisation. This can be a useful money earner for an artist but they must attenuate their own creative needs to the intentions of the science.

3. True collaboration - all the participant have an equal ownership in a project and all contribute directly towards and benefit directly from it. These kind of collaborations may not be project focussed and may be ongoing. This is a true interdisciplinary collaboration and a good example is the number of scientific centres who have regular or ongoing artists-in-residence because they have recognised the value of a different perspective from their own.

There is good work to be seen in all of these areas though my preference as I have got older is for the latter.

Best
Paul

====
Paul Brown - based in OZ April to November 2010
mailto:paul@paul-brown.com == http://www.paul-brown.com
OZ Landline +61 (0)7 3391 0094 == USA fax +1 309 216 9900
OZ Mobile +61 (0)419 72 74 85 == Skype paul-g-brown
====
Visiting Professor - Sussex University
http://www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/ccnr/research/creativity.html
====

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Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

I'm sorry for suddenly appears in the discussion but I'm not having time to
collaborate. I'm a PhD student at the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil and
at the moment a visiting researcher at the CAiiA-Hub, Planetary Collegium,
living in Plymouth, UK. I read the conversation about art and science and
remember this interesting database:

http://www.synapse.net.au/

<http://www.synapse.net.au/>Clarissa Ribeiro

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2010/5/29 Jennifer Kanary Nikolov(a) <jenniferkanary@yahoo.com>

> It seems that this discussion is in a silent bubble....
>
> but perhaps there are a lot of people who still might share their
> experiences and idea's on which factors are successes and which are pitfalls
> in art-science collaborations. It's such an old discussion at the same time,
> so perhaps people might point out existing discourse? Has anyone made a
> taxonomy of different types of collaboration?
>
> Dear Lea,
>
> You wrote:
>
>
>
> "Jennifer, I was really interested in reading your vision about what makes
> collaborations between artists and scientists successful and how the
> ultimate
> goal of successful collaborations would be knowledge production. I do not
> know
> what the percentage of collaborations between artists and scientists, which
> produce knowledge, is, but I bet it is not very high. It seems to me to be
> quite
> an ambitious task to aim for producing knowledge, even so it is undoubtedly
> a
> sign of success.
>
> In my opinion, a successful collaboration is when the expectations of
> both sides (art and science) are met. [Of course, defining the expectations
> and
> the aims of the collaboration are vital in order to produce a successful
> collaboration.] Generating knowledge would be for me going beyond the
> expectations and almost the icing on the cake (unless of course it was the
> aim
> of the project from the starting point)."
>
> The idea of art as a form of knowledge production is being discussed in the
> emerging field of artistic research.
>
> I think it is important that when scientists (academics) and artists want
> to collaborate with the aim of new forms of knowledge production, that they
> consider to formulate their research question together. So indeed having a
> collective aim at the beginning. I believe that when artists and scientists
> first get to know each others languages (for instance in a Socratic
> Discourse Bootcamp as we do with our students) they formulate questions that
> they otherwise might not do. And they can find ways of finding answers to
> the questions from several different methods that they would normally not
> try. It means that both the artist and the scientist temporarily need to let
> go of their backgrounds in order to best formulate how a question can best
> be approached.
>
> To give an example. We now have a group that studies the question: "Can You
> Take the Top Off of a Mountain?" A deceptively simple question at first, but
> this question allows for approaches from numerous fields. How would you
> approach this question from your field of expertise and what knowledge do
> you think it could generate when combined? As soon as you take a top off, a
> new top exists. What do you consider as the top? The highest blade of Grass?
> The structure on a building on the top? The atmosphere just above the trees?
> This approach led the group to now study possible (social and political)
> implications of Saba becoming part of the Netherlands, thereby taking away
> the official highest point of The Netherlands, which normally was in Vaals.
> They chose to combine methods of interviews with academics with the artistic
> method of found footage (video and photographs). They built a scale model of
> the height difference within the school stairway section so
> that one could experience the difference in height etc. They are now
> talking to politicians involved. They are still in the process of
> understanding the 'urgency' of such research, but already it is very
> promising.
>
> Last year we had a group that studied public spaces at night by
> experimenting in social activities at different locations at different
> times. For instance by handing out freshly squeezed orange juice in winter
> at temperatures of - 5 C. The interaction of public at the different times
> and locations provided insight into the effects of different designs of
> public spaces at night time. It said something about how comfortable people
> felt at night in different locations.This was later found valuable by
> municipal initiatives such as Museum Night.
>
> I do not think that this method of working and combining is new in the
> sense of never been done before, but by allowing questions to form from a
> middle ground platform we professionalise such practice. We provide
> platforms for 'hybrid' people who could not chose between the arts or the
> sciences in their education. And Yes, I think that this is currently only
> being done by few. Acting and doing in ways that you normally do not, the
> experience, brings that edge, that extra value. There is an extra challenge
> in understanding which methods to use that are best to present the research
> results...the results themselves being perhaps not completely artistic and
> not completely scientific, but inspiring speculation that opens windows to
> new discourses.
>
> One successful method of finding common ground on collaboration and forming
> a combined research question we use is to ask the students from University
> and Art School to bring a set of 'rules' with them. This is done in a
> workshop by the artist and academic Tine Melzer. Any rule will do. Think
> about: 'it has to be white', 'become naked', it has to be 25 x 40 x 65 cm.
> We then mix the rules and ask them to produce work based on these rules,
> using them all. We encourage taking the rules very literal. This is a
> successful way of letting go and at the same time using your particular
> background. The rules become the glue between the different methods.
>
> Pitfalls are to get over our fear of 'Bad' science and 'Bad' art and just
> do. As the guest teacher Tine Melzer said to the students in her workshop.
> Lets decide later if something is silly or not, if it is art or not.
>
> Jennifer
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Re: [Yasmin_discussions] : International Collaboration in the Sciences and Humanities

It seems that this discussion is in a silent bubble....

but perhaps there are a lot of people who still might share their experiences and idea's on which factors are successes and which are pitfalls in art-science collaborations. It's such an old discussion at the same time, so perhaps people might point out existing discourse? Has anyone made a taxonomy of different types of collaboration?

Dear Lea,

You wrote:

"Jennifer, I was really interested in reading your vision about what makes
collaborations between artists and scientists successful and how the ultimate
goal of successful collaborations would be knowledge production. I do not know
what the percentage of collaborations between artists and scientists, which
produce knowledge, is, but I bet it is not very high. It seems to me to be quite
an ambitious task to aim for producing knowledge, even so it is undoubtedly a
sign of success.

In my opinion, a successful collaboration is when the expectations of
both sides (art and science) are met. [Of course, defining the expectations and
the aims of the collaboration are vital in order to produce a successful
collaboration.] Generating knowledge would be for me going beyond the
expectations and almost the icing on the cake (unless of course it was the aim
of the project from the starting point)."

The idea of art as a form of knowledge production is being discussed in the emerging field of artistic research.

I think it is important that when scientists (academics) and artists want to collaborate with the aim of new forms of knowledge production, that they consider to formulate their research question together. So indeed having a collective aim at the beginning. I believe that when artists and scientists first get to know each others languages (for instance in a Socratic Discourse Bootcamp as we do with our students) they formulate questions that they otherwise might not do. And they can find ways of finding answers to the questions from several different methods that they would normally not try. It means that both the artist and the scientist temporarily need to let go of their backgrounds in order to best formulate how a question can best be approached.

To give an example. We now have a group that studies the question: "Can You Take the Top Off of a Mountain?" A deceptively simple question at first, but this question allows for approaches from numerous fields. How would you approach this question from your field of expertise and what knowledge do you think it could generate when combined? As soon as you take a top off, a new top exists. What do you consider as the top? The highest blade of Grass? The structure on a building on the top? The atmosphere just above the trees? This approach led the group to now study possible (social and political) implications of Saba becoming part of the Netherlands, thereby taking away the official highest point of The Netherlands, which normally was in Vaals. They chose to combine methods of interviews with academics with the artistic method of found footage (video and photographs). They built a scale model of the height difference within the school stairway section so
that one could experience the difference in height etc. They are now talking to politicians involved. They are still in the process of understanding the 'urgency' of such research, but already it is very promising.

Last year we had a group that studied public spaces at night by experimenting in social activities at different locations at different times. For instance by handing out freshly squeezed orange juice in winter at temperatures of - 5 C. The interaction of public at the different times and locations provided insight into the effects of different designs of public spaces at night time. It said something about how comfortable people felt at night in different locations.This was later found valuable by municipal initiatives such as Museum Night.

I do not think that this method of working and combining is new in the sense of never been done before, but by allowing questions to form from a middle ground platform we professionalise such practice. We provide platforms for 'hybrid' people who could not chose between the arts or the sciences in their education. And Yes, I think that this is currently only being done by few. Acting and doing in ways that you normally do not, the experience, brings that edge, that extra value. There is an extra challenge in understanding which methods to use that are best to present the research results...the results themselves being perhaps not completely artistic and not completely scientific, but inspiring speculation that opens windows to new discourses.

One successful method of finding common ground on collaboration and forming a combined research question we use is to ask the students from University and Art School to bring a set of 'rules' with them. This is done in a workshop by the artist and academic Tine Melzer. Any rule will do. Think about: 'it has to be white', 'become naked', it has to be 25 x 40 x 65 cm. We then mix the rules and ask them to produce work based on these rules, using them all. We encourage taking the rules very literal. This is a successful way of letting go and at the same time using your particular background. The rules become the glue between the different methods.

Pitfalls are to get over our fear of 'Bad' science and 'Bad' art and just do. As the guest teacher Tine Melzer said to the students in her workshop. Lets decide later if something is silly or not, if it is art or not.

Jennifer
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