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PRESS KIT

artscience prize

February 2012

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Press Release

The Themes

Projects 2011-2012

The Schools

The Partners

Highlights of the ArtScience Prize

To learn more...

p 28 The 2010 / 2011 winners

p 30 The ArtScience Labs network

p 31 The ArtScience Prize in the world

p 34 The ArtScience Prize in Paris

p 35 Le Laboratoire

Practical Information

CONTENT

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The ArtScience Prize, founded in Boston in 2009, is part of the international Art-Science Labs, created by David Edwards, founder of Le Laboratoire. The goal of the ArtScience Prize is to catalyze the creativity of young students by encouraging them to mesh two cultural domains: Arts and Science.

The ArtScience Prize gives students an opportunity to learn how to innovate, by working on a research theme with established scientists, artists and designers. Lasting a semester, the participants work together in small groups, developing their own project, and lear-ning how to make it come to fruition. Once the semester is over, the best innovations win a prize and the successful students participate in an international summer workshop in Paris, where they meet professionals from the worlds of design and industry, as well as other students from a host of backgrounds, all of which gives them an excellent opportunity to experiment and further develop their winning concept.Since established, the ArtScience Prize has grown worldwide, and has already been rolled out in Oklahoma, Singapore, Minnesota, amongst other places. The Prize was launched in Paris in October 2010, and takes place in Le Laboratoire, the epicenter of the ArtScience Labs network.

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press release

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Research themes on the cusp of innovationEvery year in Paris, about thirty students from the leading engineering and design schools come together to explore a research theme chosen by a scientific committee. Shared by all the cities running the ArtScience Prize, the theme also features a number of related subjects, which constitutes veritable avenues for research for the Prize young researchers.The first year’s theme was The Future of Water, and the overall experience was such a success that the committee (in agreement with its partners) encouraged two groups of students to launch new research on the packaging of water. At the same time, five other groups are working on the 2012 theme: Virtual Worlds. Since October 2011, no fewer than thirty-two students from the École Centrale Paris, Télécom ParisTech, Strate Collège Designers, École Parsons à Paris, and University College London (Management Science and Innovation Department), supported by designers, scientists and professors, have been working on cutting-edge research subjects such as threatened animal spe-cies, the virtual placebo, and the future of opera, as these projects relate to the selected theme of Virtual Worlds.

Committed PartnersSolidly supported by the ArtScience Prize partners which are Orange (partner since the initiative was launched) and Danone Research, students can avail of the professional expertise of engineers, laboratory managers, or legal persons specialized in research-related issues. The students receive regular support from Orange and Danone Research experts who help them steer their projects to success.

They participate in work sessions in the Orange Innovation Center in Issy-les-Moulineaux outside Paris and, this year, they took part in a seminar on the Danone Research and De-velopment Unit in Evian.These are clear reminders that the role played by ArtScience Prize’s partners goes well beyond providing essential, financial support; their commitment to students and pro-fessors is a major factor in ensuring the success of the human adventure which is these research sessions.

Reaching project completion During February, and on completion of the research semester, the final presentation of projects takes place before the ArtScience Prize scientific committee.The committee takes a vote and decides how selected projects could be further en-couraged. In fact, all groups receive some nature of financial support, while two or three groups win the prize and receive more significant financial support to help them realize their innovations. In addition, the winners receive development support from the Art-Science Labs network which encourages each winner to create a startup company.Lastly, the winning projects are presented in September at the Lab@Harvard University as part of an international session of the ArtScience Prize.This year, for the first time, all Paris projects of the 2012 season shall be put on display at Le Laboratoire from 15 to 21 March.

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2010/2011 theme

Virtual Worlds

Very closely linked to the world of the imagination, the concept of virtuality is as broad as it is convergent, bringing together, of itself, the worlds of Art and Science. It can also act as a bridge between theater and biology, or between metaphysics and new technolo-gies. And, at a time where new technologies are at their apogee, where virtual environments play a capital role in our society, whe-ther this be in relation to commerce, economics, culture or educa-tion, this theme constitutes an ideal source of inspiration for the ArtScience Prize. The possibilities for innovation beggar belief: in-formation technologies, new art forms, humanitarian initiatives… Virtually everything is possible.

2010/2012 Theme

The Future of Water

Along with air, water is doubtlessly the most precious resource on the planet. Water is essential for all living elements: basic cells, plant life, human beings. Water also merits special attention as a source of meditation and contemplation for all civilizations and cultures. In spite of these essential roles however, as the human population con-tinues to increase, and by extension, the demand for water grows, access to this precious resource is increasingly limited by drought, pollution and waste. What is the future of water ? What can we do now to make this future as bright as possible ? Can water be made, protected, stored or transported in ways that are environmentally sustainable and yet cost effective?

THE THEMES

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PROJECTS 2011-2012

beHive

The beHive is an enclosed area where individuals, alone or in a small group, can share their multimedia content without disturbing others. Intended for all age groups, the be-Hive consists in a table, fitted with a private projection system, enclosed inside a dome structure. Intended for general public use in special areas such as bars, cafés, restaurants and media libraries, the beHive can contribute to an emerging social culture by enabling people to avail of the benefits of technical objects, without disturbing others.

Thomas LE DLUZ Strate Collège Designers Selma MEHYAOUI Télécom ParisTech Antoine DEPREUXTélécom ParisTech Georges MAHLTélécom ParisTech Noémie PRINStrate Collège Designers

Globe Cell

Globe Cell is a cooperative Internet site where anyone can become a plastic artist for a day. Each visitor creates his/her own pixel which, when added to all the others, results in a monumental virtual work. With this project, artistic creation is based on the participation of the greatest number and is no longer reserved for the select few.

Joo Hyun LEE

Strate Collège Designers

Alexandre HALLEY

Télécom ParisTech

Marie VALLERON

Télécom ParisTech

Florian DE SA

Télécom ParisTech

Mahesh DE ZOYSA

UCL (London)

Virtual Worlds

The ArtScience Prize provides a work environment very different from the classroom: we can compare

what we know with students from other schools taking other courses. Within the groups, everyone contributes with their vision of the project and soaks up the vision of the group participants. It’s very constructive. Our motivation depends to a great extent on the feasibility of the project, and we are all very aware of the impact that this experience can have on our future careers.

Thomas Le Dluz

I’m an engineering student, and before I discovered the ArtScience Prize, I didn’t

really know anything about Art or Design. Working with people with an approach completely different to mine has made me more receptive. And by pooling our know-ledge, we often achieve surprising results! Also, the tutoring is excellent, and the envi-ronment at Le Laboratoire is ideal.

Marie ValleronStrate Collège DesignersTélécom ParisTech

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Oniris

Oniris is a volume magnifying software package. At this moment in history when most of the population of Europe lives in cities and towns, this projection system via anamor-phosis can be used to redesign the contours of rooms in an apartment or house, and to expand the perceived dimensions. This gives users the possibility to “see beyond” their walls as they enter a virtual world, without the constraints of physical boundaries.

Charles TRUONGEcole Centrale Paris Evelyne RABY Ecole Centrale Paris Paul RAMADEEcole Centrale Paris Lucas MAGNACStrate Collège Designers

I.M.O. (Immersive Mobile Observatory)

I.M.O. is a virtual simulation system intended for use with endangered animal species. The system is able to quantify the reactions of some animals when their environment is changed, virtually. We can use this tool to see if the animals’ habits (hunting, repro-duction, etc.) change when the circumstances change? IMO could play a role in saving endangered species, by helping researchers gain a better understanding of their adapta-tion capacities, and by helping concerned parties to make fully informed decisions when identifying risk sites for endangered species.

Maxime NoëlTélécom ParisTechBoris LIGERTélécom ParisTechSabine LATURNUSStrate Collège DesignersLaure-Anne PUIJALONStrate Collège DesignersMaxime DEROMETélécom ParisTech

O3 - Out of Opera

Out Of Opera is a new type of urban creation, consisting in a transparent item of street furniture onto which an opera performance is projected to create a unique high-definition visual and sound operatic experience directly in the street.People walking behind the window become a part of the set and participate virtually in the opera.

Raphaël VENTREEcole Centrale ParisJuliette TRUFFERTEcole Centrale ParisMatthieu ROUSSELOTStrate Collège DesignersVincent GUILLAUMEStrate Collège Designers

Our groups do not have any hierarchy, and decisions must be taken unani-

mously. This has taught me how to take other people’s opinions into account, and channel my natural inclination to impose myself as the leader. Moreover, the program helps to demystify entre-preneurialship by starting from the basic idea that we can have an impact on the world, wherever we’re coming from. I’ve never worked on a project with so many possibilities of achievement.

Raphaël VentreEcole Centrale Paris

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Coalescence

The purpose of the Coalescence project was to develop a water bottle cap that would be easy to remove. This packaging creates a new use, rethinks an everyday object, appa-rently of no consequence, but actually a source of stress for many people. The solution, intended for all users, gives an idea of the packaging of the future. From now on, remo-ving a cap from a bottle of water is as easy as drinking the water from a bottle. Hydros

Hydros was designed to facilitate the regular consumption of mineral water, and improve daily hydration. Hydros is a personal container, to be carried around everywhere, and intended for use with an elegant mineral water distributor at home. Hydros interacts with the user to encourage regular hydration, beneficial and adapted to the user’s health. Practical and environmentally friendly, mineral water refills are delivered to the person’s home: the mineral water comes to you, you no longer have to carry it.

Fahad FAWAL Télécom ParisTechAntoine PERPETEÉcole Centrale ParisAlexandre PAEPEGAEYÉcole Centrale ParisRobin BARATAStrate Collège Designers

Felix GODARD Strate Collège DesignersMatthieu MARTINEcole Centrale ParisNicolas STRUNDENÉcole Centrale ParisMathias LE BORGNETélécom ParisTechFlora GOUINÉcole Parsons à Paris

The Future of Water

I studied design management, and my in-volvement in the ArtScience Prize enabled

me to explore another aspect of my future profession. I’m more used to working for mu-seums and art galleries. And so, developing a product with engineers, from the seed idea to the prototype was completely new for me, and really gave me a better idea of my future career preferences.

Flora GouinÉcole Parsons à Paris

the bottle - the container - the fountain

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THE SCHOOLS

Strate Collège Designers was established in 1993 on the basis of visionary idea; namely, that design would become a strategic lever for the sustainable development of human societies, that success is a collective journey, and that means of operation are collegial. Which explains how the school got its name.Since that time, working from this vision, now shared, Strate Collège Designers has made a name for itself as one of the top 60 design schools in the world (Business Week classification) and one of the best French schools. During the same period, the school has grown from eighteen stu-dents to five hundred, with three study courses, and, at the begin-ning of 2010, it moved to a new campus in Sèvres (just outside Paris) covering 3000 square meters, specially designed to meet the Col-lege’s needs, and scaled to reflect its ambitions.

From a methodological point of view, getting the students to work in a group

is the single greatest value-added factor of the ArtScience Prize. The multi-disciplinary nature of the program forces them to ac-cept other types of reasoning, and to con-verge their ideas, ways of working, and ex-pertise. As the participants progress, the groups become independent, and start managing their projects themselves.

David Ferré, Director of the Prototyping and Modeling course at Strate Collège Designers.

Strate Collège Designers

Télécom ParisTech trains engineers in Information and Communi-cation Technologies (consulting, research and development, ma-nagement, etc.). As part of the Institut Télécom (ICT University), Té-lécom ParisTech is one of the leading European schools for third level education, research and development and innovation in ICT. Télécom ParisTech is a founding member of ParisTech (Science and Technology University) comprising twelve leading French Enginee-ring schools.

There are four main reasons why the Art-Science Prize constitutes a remarkable op-

portunity for Télécom ParisTech engineering students: faced with the challenge of coming up with an innovative project, they discover their own creativity and, to develop it, the need to abide by demanding disciplines and methods; they become more aware of the positive potential of groupwork and of the role played by design and human and social sci-ences, which they get to discover during their training. This is why I am interested in having my students work with Le Laboratoire as part of the team which, it must be said, is very plea-sant to work with.

Brigitte Munier, Researcher Professor at Télécom ParisTech.

Télécom ParisTech

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The École Parsons à Paris, founded in the 1970s by Parsons The New School for Design in New York, is a private institution of higher education that offers several high-quality programs in a multidisci-plinary environment.Students follow a four-year program and receive a U.S. ‘Bachelor of Fine Arts’ in Visual Communication, Fine Arts, Illustration, Photo-graphy, Fashion Design or a ‘Bachelor of Business Administration’ in Design & Management. Instruction is entirely in English: The École Parsons à Paris welcomes students from around the world from over forty different nationali-ties. The faculty consists of artists, designers, managers and internatio-nal professional art historians.

Ecole Parsons à Paris

Founded in 1826, University College London, commonly abbrevi-ated UCL, is the oldest constituent college of the University of Lon-don, and one of its two founding members along with the King’s College London.In 2011, The QS World University Rankings ranked it seventh of the ten best universities in the world. Twenty-one Nobel Prizes have come from this prestigious institution which welcomes students from 140 different nationalities. With 21,600 students, UCL is one of the largest colleges of the University of London.

University College London

Since it was founded in 1829, École Centrale Paris has pursued the same vocation: train scientific leaders to meet the major challenges of their time.As the years and times go by, the world continues to evolve and change, but École Centrale Paris has always succeeded in remain-ing at the cutting-edge of education. Its secret: a solid tradition for excellence combined with a resolutely forward-looking attitude. This “trademark” has seen École Centrale Paris enter the 21st century with an even stronger leading position.

Ecole Centrale Paris

As teachers in Social and Human Sci-ences, and supervisors for innova-

tive projects, it was obvious to us that the ArtScience projects were in line with our objectives: develop the cre-ativity of our students by giving them an opportunity to experience other disciplines through contact with stu-dents from other cultures, while simul-taneously embracing an innovative ap-proach. And every time, we are indeed impressed by the richness and degree of finalization of the suggested ideas. This success is the fruit of the ambition and shared commitment of Le Labora-toire, schools and enterprises, but also, and especially, of the firm commitment on the part of the students.

Cynthia Colmellere & Lisa CarrièreSocial and Human Sciences Teachers at École Centrale Paris

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THE PARTNERS

Nathalie Boulanger, Senior VP Group Marketing Innovation d�’Orange

We share the belief with Le Laboratoire that innovation today occurs at the meeting point of many disciplines.

Sharing the belief with Le Laboratoire that innovation is born where different fields, cultures and skills meet, Orange has been an Art-Science Prize Paris right from its inception, in order to reward the best projects. Enthusiastic about the quality of the work done by the students, as well as by the creativity and dynamism they de-monstrated during the first edition, Orange renewed its partner-ship this year and is eager to strengthen this connection.Throughout the semester, Orange opens the doors of its innova-tion laboratories to the ArtScience Prize students to share its ideas and technological potential with them. Orange encourages them to bring life to their ideas; and the Prize is also an opportunity to spot talent potential and work with them in different contexts.

The concept of artscience that characterizes the Prize is undoubtedly what interested us from the start. Orange is very attached to interdisciplinary exchange; for us it is a catalyst for creativity. So we were pleased by the fact that the ArtScience Prize encourages young students to meet who normally they wouldn’t have met on their edu-cational paths. The working sessions that were conducted at Le Laboratoire and at Orange Labs reinforced our ap-preciation. The students demonstrated a really enthusias-tic spirit of innovation.

The ArtScience Prize participates in a certain creative dynamism. How can this form of education, unique in the French school system, encourage innovation in your opinion?

We were impressed by the quality of work submitted by the students, by the dynamism and creativity that they demonstrated, and by their entrepreneurial spirit. In particular, this year, a lot of work was done between December and February.We share the belief with Le Laboratoire that innovation today occurs at the meeting point of several “disciplines,” and from the mix of cultures and skills. For Orange, this kind of collaboration has become essential in many areas. It provides a real benefit in terms of creativity. Moreover, students are in direct contact with the professional world since they are required to meet experts from all disciplines; this educational aspect is a real asset for the realization of their project.

Orange has been an official partner of the ArtScience Prize Paris for two years, even before its official launch: So you believed in the potential of this educational pro-gram from the beginning. What attracted you to the program ?

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This year Danone Research became a partner of ArtScience Prize Paris. Why did you decide to support this educational program?

Out of curiosity at first : we were pleased by what Le Labora-toire had already done on Water in 2010 and wanted to partici-pate as a partner in this kind of approach....Then, out of a taste for experimentation... Trying new paths and new methods is part of Danone Group’s value. To experi-ment, through this program, with new ways of innovating, to ask questions in another way, to listen to an audience different from the one we are used to working with... All this is an exci-ting experience for us.

The ArtScience Prize is primarily a teaching tool, which allows students to familiarize themselves with interdisciplinarity and open reflection. In your opinion, what can this form of education, unprecedented in the French school system, bring to students and companies?

I see three interests: the working group bringing together students from different pro-grams, not “formatted” in the same way, giving everyone the opportunity to provide his/her own vision of the subject, of the possible solution... The “blank sheet” approach, a short, inspiring subject, essentially an open question, leaving the door open for dis-cussion, and finally the connection to the corporate world with an approach different from an internship ... Here it is about co-creating by relying on the company but leaving a distance for the students in the end, a very empowering freedom.

Frédéric Jouin, R&D Global Packaging Platform Director, Waters & Dairy at Da-

none Research.

Danone Research, a new partner of the ArtScience Prize, is interested in this educational and experimental program. Recognizing the value of engineering and design students working together, the R&D Packaging team from DANONE Research is involved at every step in the innovation approach of these groups of young researchers around the theme of the future of water. Several visits to Danone research facilities are offered to students to stimulate their creativity.

Trying new paths and new methods is part of Danone Group’s value.

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mid

october

2011

Annual launch of the ArtScience Prize at Le Laboratoire

Visiting partner innovation laboratories

october -

november

2011

Mid-term presentation of projects

mid

december

2011

Students, professors and partners meet for the first time. David Edwards, founder of the ArtScience Prize, reveals the annual research theme.Following the launch, design and engineering students are brought to-gether by group and choose the topic that they will work on for an entire semester.

In addition to working closely with professors, experts, designers and other renowned contributors, students are invited to meet professionals on site. The involvement of Orange and Danone Research as partners is an essen-tial part of this collaboration. This season, students were welcomed at the Danone Research center; they also had the opportunity to visit the Evian plant. For their part, the Orange Labs welcomed them during exceptional work sessions on the latest innovations, with Orange design partners.

Three months after the launch of the ArtScience Prize, the students are able to present the results of their initial research.This presentation takes place at Le Laboratoire in the presence of all pro-fessional contributors to the Prize.This session is an opportunity to redirect some research and provide some guidance to ensure projects can be carried out.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ARTSCIENCE PRIZE

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february

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march

2012

Awards Ceremony

After five months of research, projects are finalized and ready to be pre-sented in front of the ArtScience Prize scientific committee.This presentation takes place at Le Laboratoire and engages the profes-sionals involved in the Prize throughout the semester of work: profes-sors, professionals contributing during the year (researchers, scientists, designers, artists...).

Final presentation of projects

This Award Ceremony evening is an opportunity to honor the outstan-ding work of the young creators.In 2011, all the groups received financial support to enable them to ad-vance their research. Two or three winners are nominated and receive additional funding, the objective being that the students continue to pur-sue their projects to completion.

From the 15th to the 21st of March, Le Laboratoire shows the students’ projects to the general public, an opportunity to gain a new perspective on innovation, and to educate students and professors about the impor-tance of interdisciplinary exchange.The exhibition is free and open to the public from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM.

Exhibition of the projects at Le Laboratoire

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september

2012

Each year, Le Laboratoire hosts the ArtScience Labs international work-shop which gathers a hundred students from all countries who work in groups on the annual theme. Winners of the ArtScience Prize actively participate in this summer workshop, a highlight of the ArtScience Labs network program.

International Workshop

The winners present their project at the Laboratory@Harvard in a joint exhibition with all of the winners of the ArtScience Prize in the world.For an evening, in front of about six hundred guests, students and pro-fessionals, and sometimes investors, the winners showcase their projects.

Presentation at Harvard University

And after�…Winners are encouraged to complete their projects. The most motivated quickly take off on an entrepreneurial adventure; like the Fuso team, win-ner of the first edition, who, with their patent pending, is continuing their search for materials to complete their project this year.

Reaching project completion

TO LEARN MORE...

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Fuso

THE 2010 / 2011 WINNERS

Fuso is an innovative and easy to use water filtration device.This device makes it possible to purify a liter of water in one minute, using only hand pressure. Small and compact, it uses existing filters that are effective but difficult to use on other devices. The Fuso revolution lies in the use of force by immediate mechanical pressure (the universal motion of wringing the hands), to make water pass through the filters faster and easier.

Easily transportable, Fuso is intended primarily for populations in emergency situations. It can be reused up to a thousand times and of course, quenches thirst, but also makes it possible to store clean water for washing, cleaning food, dishes, etc. Fuso is also inten-ded for frequent travelers or hikers who need to be able to obtain clean water at all times.This object, devised to be environmentally friendly, from production to the end of its life, is as easy for a child to use as for an adult.

Fuso is the first manual and transportable water purifier, designed without polluting ma-terials. Eventually, it could replace existing solutions such as plastic.

Based on the alarming reports about the overuse of water, Tapminder is a simple device which, once screwed onto a water tap, enables everyone to be aware of his/her water use and thus avoid wasting it.

This is achieved by inflating the system with each use of the tap; the idea being to draw the consumer’s attention to his/her motions. It thus helps consumers avoid automatically and carelessly turning the water on too high. When inflated, a preventive message ap-pears, affixed to the inflatable portion. Tapminder thus serves as a reminder of the user’s consumption, who gradually acquires the habit of turning the water off or reducing the flow rate. Consumers thus learn to control their actions themselves and eventually achieve more significant water conservation.

In addition to this preventive action, Tapminder is taking action where water is scarce. Indeed, the project includes donating a portion of its profits to NGOs working for better access to water. The Tapminder user is also involved in choosing the NGO that he/she wants to sponsor through this purchase.

A project designed by : Wladimir Patricot (Télécom ParisTech), Bastien Perdriault (Strate Collège Designers), Alexandre Sourzac-Lami (Ecole Centrale Paris) and Sophie Yana (Télécom ParisTech).

A project designed by!: Yannis Bekel (Ecole Centrale Paris), Jun Bourdier (Ecole Centrale Paris), Joachim Cohen (Ecole Centrale Paris), Antoine de Caminel (Ecole Centrale Paris), Guillaume Thuaut ( Strate Collège Designers) and Audrey Vacher (Strate Collège Designers).

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Strengthened by its success in Boston, the ArtScience Prize quickly gained momentum and has expanded internationally; it is now based in Paris, Oklahoma City, Singapore and Minnesota.Barcelona, Berlin, London and Seoul are preparing to host the Prize in the coming months and to join the educational program of the ArtScience Labs network.

Common goals, different players The educational objective is the same for all cities: stimulate the creativity of young people, and familiarize them with interdisciplinarity and open reflection by encouraging them to innovate.The annual theme and research areas are also adopted by all ArtScience Prize locations.

The mode of operation, meanwhile, is adapted to each city, its location and resources, during a pilot year with small groups of students. A team is set up to coordinate the pro-gram during the year; it designates mentors (artists, designers or scientists) to guide stu-dents in developing their projects. School and university curricula vary from one country to another, each site works with students from different backgrounds and levels (high school students, university students, young professionals...), between 15 and 27 years of age.

This international presence ensures a wide variety of approaches to the ArtScience Prize, fundamental in the field of innovation.

The!summer!workshop,!an international gatheringThe winning students from each country meet at the end of their semester of research during the summer workshop, held at Le Laboratoire in Paris. For one week, these young people have the opportunity to experiment and improve their concept and to share their ideas, experiences and knowledge with professionals in Art and Design from around the world.

THE ARTSCIENCE PRIZE IN THE WORLD

ArtScience Labs is the international network which brings together the Laboratoires cre-ated by David Edwards, a professor at Harvard University.These Laboratoires are places of research, creation and achievement that combine art and cutting-edge science in a socially responsible approach.They invite artists, designers, scientists and students from around the world to develop their creativity in innovative, educational, industrial and humanitarian projects.

THE ARTSCIENCE LABS NETWORK

© Benoît Linero

We created our network of artscience labora-tories -!now joined together as ArtScience

Labs™! - to provide a uniformly experimental environment in which unique ideas can flourish and become major applications in the fields of education, culture, industry and social ties. This network of laboratories is similar to an “incuba-tor of ideas,” ideas that enter the dreams of pas-sionate high school or university students, that are then transformed into works of art or design and become commercial products or, alterna-tively, humanitarian actions. Along the way, par-ticipants learn to imagine, convince, collaborate, and achieve. Different ArtScience Labs centers offer creators a stimulating and interdisciplinary experimental environment, and serve as catalysts of change for schools and universities, businesses, public bo-dies or non-governmental organizations.

David Edwards

An incubator of ideas

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The ArtScience Prize is based on the idea of art-science - the combination of aesthetic and ana-

lytical modes of thinking to produce innovative ideas. This concept grew from the notion that in order to come up with truly groundbreaking ideas and to de-velop fully as creative individuals, innovators at any age must push outside of their comfort zones to spac-es where there is no clear answer and they can use their imaginations and dream big.

Carrie Fitzsimmons, Executive director ArtScience Labs

This international expansion and replication of the ArtScience Prize will enable us to make an impact on creativity education on a larger scale than ever before.

We also recognize that in order to move beyond ineffective solutions and the status quo, individuals must experiment with disciplinary perspectives and work in cultures that are not necessarily familiar to them. From these concepts, the ArtScience Prize has deve-loped as a globally-connected idea development program that fosters personal pas-sion, cultivates the desire and skills to have an impact on the world, and works with part-ners to provide resources that bring students from idea conception to idea realization. In 2008, the ArtScience Prize was adapted from an innovative “Idea Translation Lab” model of experience-based education developed in 2003 at Harvard University by David Edwards and piloted with high school students in Boston public schools. The ArtScience Prize and the idea translation methodology have received international media and insti-tutional attention as a model for creativity and innovation education. The program cur-rently operates in several cities in the United States, France, Singapore, Ireland, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and at Harvard University.! The ArtScience Prize is now operating at the high school and university level in eleven cities around the world and has a waiting list of sites that numbers well over twenty-five.!In 2012, we are working with partners to pilot and launch the ASP in London; Canada (Alberta), and South Korea, and by 2014 intend to launch the program in eight additional sites in North America and Europe. This interna-tional expansion and replication of both the ArtScience Prize high school and university-level programs and the Idea Translation Lab university-level program, will enable us to make an impact on creativity education on a larger scale than ever before.

The ArtScience Prize supports young people to develop innovative art and design ideas that are both personally and societally relevant. Within the context of a cutting-edge scientific theme that changes annually (e.g., Neuroinformatics, Future of Water, Virtual Worlds, Synthetic Biology, Energy), adult Program Mentors (expert educators from varied disciplinary backgrounds who are trained extensively on our methodology to support our curriculum and ensure quality) guide teams of ASP students through a three-step Idea Translation methodology in which they conceive, translate, and realize their own ideas. Based upon the scientific themes, student teams work throughout the year, supported by ASP mentors, to create and realize project proposals. Teams of 3-5 students meet on a long-term basis to grapple with personally-relevant seed ideas: blue-sky concepts and provocative questions that serve as a departure point for students’ own project ideation.

The program creates a learning space that is ripe for the development of original ideas by supporting students to dream big.

The heart of this creative process is aspirational design - the combination of student passion and societal need to produce groundbreaking and socially-relevant ideas. The program creates a learning space that is ripe for the development of original ideas by supporting students to take risks, dream big, work simultaneously in diverse disciplines, and combine different modes of thinking. Unlike other educational models that focus exclusively on the arts or sciences, the ASP instead helps students to learn by encoura-ging them to shift easily between disciplines. Visitors to our classrooms are just as likely to see student teams exploring this year’s Virtual Worlds scientific theme by creating an ani-mated movie or an installation art piece as they are to see students exploring how virtual worlds are helping scientists to map the human genome or envisioning virtual worlds that will help the public to understand the life experiences of animals on the verge of extinc-tion. Within this interdisciplinary learning environment, adult educators mentor students through the development of a set of skills central to idea development (brainstorming, research, prototyping, communication, etc.) and help to build a community of support that includes students’ own peers in the classroom, community experts and other ASP students from throughout the global ArtScience Prize network.

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LE LABORATOIRE

Artscience meetingsSince opening in October 2007, Le Laboratoire has developed experience in a variety of creative fields.Along these lines, visual artists, including Fabrice Hyber or Shilpa Gupta, were able to meet leading scientists, respectively, Robert Langer, a researcher in biochemistry, and the American neuropsychologist Mazharin Banaji, or the Japanese digital music composer Ryoji Ikeda who was able to present his first solo exhibition in collaboration with the num-ber theorist from Harvard University, Benedict Gross.

A new territory for exploration, Le Laboratoire is a place for art and design at the frontiers of science; it falls under the aegis of the international ArtScience Labs network, created by David Edwards (writer and professor at Harvard University).The experiments that occur at Le Laboratoire result from creators and scientists meeting each other; they are destined to educational, humanitarian and commercial ends when innovation is the catalyst for a product.

From design to productionOn the design side, designers like Mathieu Lehanneur, Marc Bretillot or Francois Azam-bourg had the opportunity to develop their research thanks to the involvement of top-flight specialists and scientists. Their prototypes, shown at Le Laboratoire, were then de-veloped and produced by ArtScience Labs. Andrea (the air purifier by plants from Mr. Lehanneur) or The WHAF (the cloud generator from Mr. Bretillot) are the result of design experiments conducted at Le Laboratoire.

Le WHAF

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The second year of a prize is always the trickiest. Will the students from the engineering and design schools

that make up the ArtScience Prize be as good as the first year ?Will they invest as much in their projects during the short months that bring them together ? Will the final presen-tations be creative enough ? Will the public who attends still be impressed by the innovative work of the students ?All these questions were put to bed by the accolades on the evening of February 7, just after the final presenta-tions of seven groups of students.

Students learn to! research together,! to invent! in areas that are!foreign!to them.

The educational program of the ArtScience Prize is unique. It does not correspond to the traditional teaching which has produced our students from the Grandes Ecoles, quite the opposite: here, there is no perfect answer to a question. Not even a ques-tion. Nor any right or wrong answer. Just a path to follow, to dig, and an idea to find, with subtle educational support. The different cultures of scientists and designers confront each other, complement each other. They learn to research together, to invent in areas foreign to them. Because they are motivated themselves to advance their research, they are passionate about their subject.

Initially, we see the groups once a week at Le Laboratoire. Gradually, students bom-bard each other with emails, meet for long hours and more and more frequently. During the final presentations, everyone defends and believes in the project that he/she has built, from scratch. Satisfied, they know they have already won, beyond a prize that will perhaps enable them to get financial assistance to go forward or even travel to Harvard to share their ideas.

This year again, during the first brainstorming sessions in October, the students were embarrassed when asked to give free rein to their imagination, to throw out ideas for new projects. They hardly dared to look at each other, embarrassed and very cau-tious. Six months later, those same eyes are bright, proud and happy. That is for me the greatest achievement of the ArtScience Prize.

THE ARTSCIENCE PRIZE IN PARIS

Olivier Borgeaud, Deputy Director of Le Laboratoire, Director of the ArtScience Prize Paris

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

PRESS CONTACT

Valérie AbrialDirector of communication of Le Laboratoire

valerie.abrial@lelaboratoire.org

+33 (0)1 78 09 49 55

ARTSCIENCE PRIZE CONTACT

Olivier BorgeaudDeputy Director of Le LaboratoireDirector of the Artscience Prize

olivier@artsciencelabs.org

+33 (0)1 78 09 49 54

ARTSCIENCE PRIZEwww.artscienceprize.org

ARTSCIENCE LABSwww.artsciencelabs.org

@DAVID EDWARDSwww.davidideas.com

LE LABORATOIREwww.lelaboratoire.org