Art, Data and Ecology: A Panel and Project Report

Common Ground: Art, Data and Ecology at NYS Field Stations is an inquiry into how the fields of art and science can collaborate, especially using environmental data and engaging in transdisciplinary research. Harvestworks and the New York City Urban Field Station will release a report early next year on the potential for such collaborations in New York State. Join us for a briefing on what we’ve learned, and hear about the Urban Field Station’s artist-in-residency program based in Fort Totten Park in Queens.

A panel discussion will feature four artists – Ben Neill & Mimi Goese, Kristin Lucas and Tae Hong Park—who are collaborating with scientific researchers and using data drawn from the natural world as part of their creative process. We will explore their recent projects and topics including:

What makes collaboration between artists and scientists work? How can trust be fostered and expectations be made clear? How does artistic and scientific research relate?

How does data become art? Can we speak of data as a creative medium? What are the obligations of the artist to be “true” to the data?

In what ways can art shift individual perceptions of the environment, inform the public, encourage civic engagement, expand or change local management, or impact policy? Or enhance the work of collaboration between research and environmental organizations? Can these, or should these, be artistic goals?