PRESS PACK
“KNOWLEDGE IS LIMITED, WHEREAS
IMAGINATION EMBRACES THE ENTIRE WORLD.”
Albert Einstein
Arts@CERN is the multidisciplinary arts programme at CERN based just outside
Geneva, Switzerland, at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, home of the
world-famous Large Hadron Collider. The programme connects and collides the
world’s leading scientists with international artists through carefully curated “creative
collisions,” which take the form of interactions, interplay and interventions. The mission
is for artists and scientists to inspire and challenge each other to go beyond paradigms.
These creative collisions happen on the very site where particles are being collided at
nearly the speed of light to recreate the beginning of the universe at the world’s largest
particle physics laboratory. Over 11,000 scientists from over 100 countries and 680
institutions around the world work together at CERN to further knowledge of our
universe’s past, present and future. In the 21st century, arts, science and technology
form the essential basis of our culture and are natural creative partners for innovation.
The Arts@CERN programme was initiated, created and is directed by Ariane Koek,
CERN’s first cultural specialist, following her 4 month feasibility study in 2009 funded by
the Clore Fellowship, an international award for cultural leadership. The study led to the
creation of Arts@CERN which comprises 3 different strands: the Collide@CERN artists
residency awards, the Accelerate@CERN artists research awards, and Visiting Artists.
The feasibility study in turn led in 2010 to the introduction of CERN’s cultural policy,
“Great Arts for Great Science,” and CERN appointing its first Honorary Cultural
Advisory Board for the Arts to advise on arts engagement. The board comprises of
Andrea Bellini, Director of Centre d’Art Contemporain de Genève; Carena Schlewitt,
Director Kaserne Basel; Laurent Le Bon, President of the Picasso Museum, Paris;
CERN scientists Frédérick Bordry Director for Accelerators and Technology and Dr.
Bilge Demirköz.
Director-General of CERN, Rolf Heuer, welcomes the arts, saying: “Together science
and the arts form culture, our expression of what it is to be human in our universe. Our
work is in science, but when we engage with the arts, we want to ensure we approach
it at the same level of quality.”
The Arts@CERN flagship programme Collide@CERN was first officially launched in
2011 with an open call at the celebrated Ars Electronica Festival, which was held that
year specifically in collaboration with CERN. Entitled ‘Origins’, with a particle collision as
its logo, the festival’s international symposium focused on CERN as a potential model
for life, work and culture in the future.
Some of the most innovative artists working today are creative patrons of the
programme: Swiss architect Jacques Herzog, Japanese artist Mariko Mori, German
photographer Andreas Gursky, and British sculptor Antony Gormley. These worldfamous artists have all visited CERN and been inspired by the work we do here.
DETAILS ABOUT Collide@CERN
The Collide@CERN prize is awarded to two different artists every year. The residency
award, which was initially created to run for 3 years –2012-14– is entirely funded by
external funders. The award comprises a fully funded residency stay of up to 3 months
at CERN, with a bursary for accommodation, subsistence and travel costs as well as a
stipend of 15,000 CHF. The award is given after an annual international competition,
with a jury comprising cultural experts, including CERN scientists, selecting the artists.
The award winners have in-depth induction visits up to 3 months before they start their
residencies to fire their interest and imaginations before the residency begins. During
these crucial visits, they are matched with their CERN inspiration partner, who will be
with them throughout their residency as well as appearing with them at the lectures at
the beginning and ending of the residency.
In the first 3 years of the programme 2012-14, the competitions to win a residency of
up to 3 months were held in conjunction with three cultural partners. One prize held
with the City of Geneva, and with The Republic and Canton of Geneva, known as
Collide@CERN Geneva, was entirely funded by them. Another prize, held
internationally, with Ars Electronica, Linz: the Prix Ars Electronica Collide@CERN, which
was 80% funded by private donors, known as the Exclusive Friends of Collide@CERN
with 10,000 Euros prize money donated by Ars Electronica, Linz.
Due to the international success and acclaim of the programme, it is being continued
beyond its initial 3-year remit. From 2015 onwards, the Collide@CERN prize is also held
with the Swiss Arts Council known as Pro Helvetia (Collide@CERN ProHelvetia), by
alternating with Geneva each year.
Collide@CERN PERFORMANCES
The first Collide@CERN artists in residence in 2012, the German visual artist Julius von
Bismarck and the Swiss choreographer Gilles Jobin, were awarded the prestigious
Hermès Foundation New Settings Award for their Collide@CERN collaboration called
‘QUANTUM’. Julius von Bismarck's light installation, first showcased at the Ars
Electronica Festival in 2011, is the setting for the new choreography which resulted
from Gilles Jobin's Collide@CERN residency in 2012.
Thanks to the Hermès Foundation award as well as support by amongst others
Swissnex who call the Collide@CERN programme “an outstanding example of the
innovation of Swiss research which embraces interdisciplinary approaches and
communicates and raises awareness of the creative solutions artists and scientists can
find together.”
'QUANTUM' has been touring internationally, and so far has covered 80,000km, being
shown in 10 countries across 3 continents, following its world premiere at the CMS
detector hall at CERN September 2013.
First winner of Collide@CERN Geneva, choreographer Gilles Jobin in
rehearsal of his dance piece developed during his residency: Quantum, at CERN point 5, CMS
experiment. The lighting installation is by the first winner of the Prix Ars Electronica
Collide@CERN, Julius von Bismarck, and was created during his residency in 2012.
Second winner of Prix Ars Electronica Collide@CERN, sound artist,
Bill Fontana. A sound experiment with a loud speaker, 100mts underground in the
tunnel of The Large Hadron Collider, at CERN. The beginning of “Acoustic Time Travel”,
July 2013.
Photo by Michael Fontana
Photo by Julian Calo
DETAILS ABOUT VISITING ARTISTS
Alongside the flagship Collide@CERN Artists Residency programme, the
Arts@CERN team selects up to 12 Visiting Artists a year who are specially chosen
for their excellence. Arts@CERN hosts these one-two day artist visits to CERN to
encourage new artistic work inspired by particle physics and the visits are specially
organized to include meetings with physicists and a chance to see parts of the Large
Hadron Collider (LHC) as well as other experiments. We follow up these curated visits
with additional research support, and many of these visits have developed into much
larger ongoing projects.
World-renowned artists such as the Polish conceptual artist Goshka Macuga, the
Finnish conductor and composer Esa Pekka-Salonen, the German photographer
Wolfgang Tillmans, the Swiss video artist Pipilotti Rist, the painter
Anselm Kiefer and American choreographer William Forsythe have all benefited
from this scheme, as well young emerging artists such as the Dutch composer
Arnoud Noordegraaf, the Irish playwright/performer Niamh Shaw and Norwegian
artist Samoa Remy.
New projects, which came directly from the Visiting Artists scheme, include Rambert
Dance Company creating a new work called “The Strange Charms of Mother Nature”
which premiered in September 2014. This was by two Visiting Artists, the
choreographer and artistic director, Mark Baldwin and the composer Cheryl FrancesHoad who created a new piece called “Quark Dances” especially for the score.
The Paris Fashion Show in Autumn 2014 featured the new Spring/Summer Collection
2015, “Magnetic Motion”, by Dutch designer Iris Van Herpen inspired by the magnetic
forces she learnt about during her Visiting Artists tour.
Ruben Van Leer has just completed shooting a science-dance-opera film, “Symmetry”,
which will be broadcast in 2015.
Goshka Macuga has been commissioned by the Centre D’Art Contemporain in Geneva
to make a new work in May 2015.
Esa Pekka-Salonen is planning a major project involving particle physics and classical
music.
In Autumn 2013, we added an exciting new artists research programme to the
Arts@CERN roster.
DETAILS ABOUT Accelerate@CERN
This programme is for artists living and working in specific countries in a specific arts
domain, including (but not exclusively) countries from amongst the 21 member states,
which support CERN. After entering a competition in their country, which is judged by a
jury, winning artists from two different countries a year win a fully funded and supported
research stay at CERN for a month.
Accelerate@CERN is a rolling programme, with two different countries every year
participating to celebrate culture with interactions at CERN across the arts, science and
technology.
During its first year, 2013/14, Accelerate@CERN Greece (Visual Arts) was sponsored
by the Onassis Foundation, and Accelerate@CERN Switzerland (Web based art and
Design) was sponsored by Pro Helvetia. In 2014/15 Accelerate@CERN Austria
(Architecture) is funded by the Austrian Federal Government and Accelerate@CERN
Taiwan (Digital Performance/Dance) funded by the Ministry of Culture of Taiwan. And
there are more to come…
Arts@CERN LECTURE TOURS
Collide@CERN artists and scientists have appeared in a series of themed talks on
Sound, Movement and Sight, beginning at the Onassis Cultural Centre in Athens 201314. Collide@CERN is featured in many international conferences and venues, including
the European Commission, Brussels; Fundación Telefónica, Madrid Spain; Salzburg
Global Forum, Austria; and the Exploratorium, San Francisco, USA.
In addition, we do events at CERN’s Globe of Science and Innovation, introducing the
new Collide@CERN artists at the beginning and the end of their residencies. These are
a sell-out success every year and we have a very popular monthly newsletter.
BECOMING A PART OF Arts@CERN
Whether you are interested in joining Exclusive Friends of Collide@CERN and becoming
part of our family of supporters who enjoy special access in thanks for their
contributions which enable these residencies to happen, or if you wish to become an
international partner/funder to create a new residency award with us, we welcome
hearing from you. Please contact us at [email protected].
COLLIDE@CERN
HISTORY OF AWARDS
Collide@CERN ARS ELECTRONICA
2011-12 Winner:
Julius von Bismarck (visual artist, Germany)
bit.ly/Collide_at_CERN_Julius_von_Bismarck_web_bundle
2011-12 Honorary Mentions:
Arnoud Noordegraaf (composer, Netherlands) & Adrian Hornsby (writer, UK), an
interdisciplinary music theatre collaboration; Eno Henze (generative artist and coder,
Germany); Natasa Teofilovic (new media artist, Serbia)
2012-13 Winner:
Bill Fontana (sound sculptor, USA)
bit.ly/Collide_at_CERN_Bill_Fontana_web_bundle
2012-13 Honorary Mention:
Ale de la Puente (visual artist and writer, Mexico)
2013-14 Winner:
Ryoji Ikeda (data artist, Japan)
http://www.ryojiikeda.com/
2013-14 Honorary Mention:
Agnes Meyer-Brandis (visual artist, Germany)
Collide@CERN GENEVA – Collide@CERN ProHelvetia
2012 Winner - Performance and choreography:
Gilles Jobin (Switzerland)
bit.ly/Collide_at_CERN_Gilles_Jobin_web_bundle
2013 Winner - Film:
Jan Peters (Germany)
http://bit.ly/collide_at_cern_jan_peters_web_bundle
2014 Winners – Music:
Rudy Decelière & Vincent Hänni (Switzerland)!
http://www.rudydeceliere.net/ & http://powapowa.ch/vincent_haenni/
2015 Winners – Digital Arts:
Fragment.in (Switzerland) - Simon de Diesbach, Laura Perrenoud, Marc Dubois
http://fragment.in/
Accelerate@CERN Winners
Accelerate@CERN Switzerland 2014
Nadezda Suvorova & Mario von Rickenbach
http://www.mariov.ch/
Accelerate@CERN Greece 2014
Nikos Papadopoulos
http://nikospapadopoulos.info/
Accelerate@CERN Taiwan 2015
Digital artist Pei-Ying Lin, and Dancer WenChi Su
Accelerate@CERN Austria 2015
Sandra Manninger and Matias Del Campo!
http://www.span,arch.org!!
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Arts@CERN Contact Details
Monica Bello
Head of Arts@CERN
Direct Line +41 22 76 63663
Mobile: +41 76 487 7575
[email protected]
Julian Calo
Arts@CERN Coordinator
[email protected]
Direct line +41 22 76 62109
Mobile +41 76 487 7240
Batiment 3, R 008, CERN 1211 Geneva 23, Switzerland.
Website: CERN.ch/arts
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Collidecern
Newsletter: http://bit.ly/artsatcerndecember2014
Twitter: @ArtsAtCERN (twitter.com/ArtsAtCERN)