Symposiums

SymbioticA attracts exciting thinkers and innovative arts practitioners. Having produced 5 local symposiums and 1 international symposium in China, SymbioticA’s symposiums often coincide with a major exhibition, discussing in detail thematic concerns raised in the show.

Artists in the Science Shrine
Artists’ residencies in science and research settings
22nd – 24th of July 2008 in Perth, Western Australia.

SymbioticA hosted the Artsactive Thinktank, where participants interrogated the issues impacting upon the success and sustainability of art/science residency programs now and into the future. A public forum “Artists in the Science Shrine” was held on the 22nd for the Western Australian arts community to hear about Artsactive opportunities for artists’ residencies in science and research settings in Australia and internationally. Outcomes of the think-tank will include a set of best-practice methodologies for the delivery of inter-disciplinary residency programs in academic and industry settings.The findings were disseminated immediately after the think-tank at the international conference, ISEA 2008, held in Singapore.

STILL, TALKING
A SymbioticA Symposium
The Bakery ARTRAGE Complex
19 September 2007
1-6pm

SymbioticA will present an afternoon discussion around the ideas of the Still, Living exhibition. Symbiotic and parasitic engagement across living systems and artistic practice will be dissected by artists, scientists and academics. Speakers include Beatriz da Costa, Ionat Zurr, Adele Senior, Jens Hauser, Kirsten Hudson, Guy Ben-Ary, Verena Kaminiarz and more.

http://www.stillliving.symbiotica.uwa.edu.au/

STRANGE ATTRACTORS
A SymbioticA Symposium
Sunday 23 July 2006 9-5pm
Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai
Presented by Zendai Museum of Modern Art, Novamedia, The University of Western Australia and SymbioticA.

Drawing inspiration from the Strange Attractors exhibition - artists, scientists and cultural commentators discuss the area of art and science collaborations and notions of how science and technology effect and infect culture. A cross cultural panel of Chinese and Australians will explore the effect science and technology has on art and society.
Speakers included Douglas Bakkum, Stuart Bunt, Christine Cargill, Oron Catts, Peter E Charuk, Philip Gamblen, George (Poonkhin) Khut, Jin Jiangpo, Hu Jieming, Ma Lin, Jon McCormack, Wang Nanming, Jane Quon, Julie Ryder, David Rye, Hellen Sky, Ionat Zurr.

http://www.strangeattractors.symbiotica.uwa.edu.au/

METAPHORS AND MISUNDERSTANDINGS: When Science and Culture Clash and Merge.
A SymbioticA Symposium
Friday June 16 2006
The University of Western Australia

Interdisciplinary research has become an increasingly important focus in academia in recent years. Although collaboration across disparate fields instigates new configurations of knowledge and practice, it can also lead to confusion and misunderstanding. The Metaphors and Misunderstandings Symposium addresses some of the issues that emerge in communication across disciplines – with specific reference to the intersection of the life sciences with the fine arts and the humanities. How do metaphors of language and practice within art, biology, philosophy and ethics affect or infect the cross-over of the arts and sciences?

Speakers included Dr Thierry Bardini, Oron Catts, Professor Miranda Grounds, Ionat Zurr, Boo Chapple, Jennifer Willet, Shawn Bailey, Marie-Pier Boucher, Megan Schlipalius.

http://www.metaphorsandmisunderstanding.symbiotica.uwa.edu.au/

BEAP2004
BIODIFFERENCE CONFERENCE
11 September 2004
The University of Western Australia

The BioDifference Conference discussed the various approaches and paradoxes of Biological Art. The living, the non-living and the in between were manipulated, politicised, aestheticised and debated along with issues surrounding activism, feminism and formalism.

Academics, artists and scientists presented a diverse range of papers looking at the politics, the personal, the science, the literature and the art of art dealing with living systems. The Key note speaker was George Gessert and the Plenary paper was presented by Steve Wilson. A panel discussion regarding the politics of dealing with living systems included Ionat Zurr, Shannon Bell, Stuart Bunt, Faith Wilding and Paul Vanouse. Individual papers were presented by: Helen Merrick, Ken Rinaldo, Tess Williams, Kira O’Reilly and Boo Chapple.

An Audio and visual archive on BEAP2002 and BEAP2004 is available at http://www.beap.org

BEAP2002
THE AESTHETICS OF CARE? SYMPOSIUM  
The inaugural SymbioticA Symposium
August 5 2002
Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts
Northbridge, Western Australia.

A seminar focusing on the artistic, social and scientific implications of the use of biological/medical technologies for artistic purposes held in conjunction with BioFeel.
A lawyer, scientists, animal liberationist, artists, philosophers and art historians presented papers on the complexities of this new realm of scientific, artistic and humanist issues.
Download the original publication HERE, and listen to the lecture series HERE.

The publication of papers was republished in 2004 with an update from Biotech Lawyer Lori Andrews, George Gessert and Redmond Bridgeman.
To purchase a hard copy of the 2004 publication send an email to sym@symbiotica.uwa.edu.au.