LEARNING OUTCOMES
Participants will be exposed to a diverse range of topics, issues and practices within the developing field of art, science & technology - especially selected for and from a creative perspective. By the end of the course participants have an understanding of a wide range of current interests and the field in general - with which to reflect upon their own transdisciplinary research and practice.
Credits: 5
Schedule: 01.03.2022 - 05.04.2022
Teacher in charge (valid for whole curriculum period):
Teacher in charge (applies in this implementation): Helena Sederholm, Laura Beloff
Contact information for the course (applies in this implementation):
helena.sederholm@aalto.fi
laura.beloff@aalto.fi
CEFR level (valid for whole curriculum period):
Language of instruction and studies (applies in this implementation):
Teaching language: English. Languages of study attainment: English
CONTENT, ASSESSMENT AND WORKLOAD
Content
valid for whole curriculum period:
The course consists of lectures, provided readings and discussions.
The course is an in-depth lecture-series that is designed to run parallel and in addition to practice-based courses, especially focused on a range of topics and research inherent for the field crossing over art, science and technology. The lectures within the course introduce - relevant topics from the sciences, interests of practitioners in art & science & technology, as well as conceptual, philosophical and theoretical concerns related to these areas. The lecturers include external visitors and Aalto-based experts.
The list of lectures will be published later.
applies in this implementation
This year’s Art & Science-course will look into the concept of contamination with a wide perspective – view points are presented by artists, researchers and scientists who will address contamination or related aspects/concepts from their unique perspectives.
Wikipedia defines that contamination is the presence of a constituent, impurity, or some other undesirable element that spoils, corrupts, infects, makes unfit, or makes inferior a material, physical body, natural environment, workplace, etc. There is also a partial list of various types of contamination, such as chemical, environmental, food-based, radioactive, interplanetary, etc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contamination
We will have 5 focus lectures presenting different approaches and understandings of the term. The 5th session will be dedicated to small group discussions and shared insights and/or questions - and on the 6th session is the evaluation day with short oral presentations by MA students. The DA students are expected to submit a 2-3 page text by the 6th session or right after.
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The term contamination is part of our everyday vocabulary relating to various areas (environment, mind, biology, integrity, politics, migration, art, computers, …). However, even being used and present in various fields there is currently little investigation into this concept, its meaning and how it functions in these areas and in our society.
One can ask if this quite loaded term is mainly ‘functional’ in different fields or does it reveal certain ways of thinking in society? It seems that the term itself and its use would deserve an in-depth investigation on its meaning to contemporary society. How does contamination relate and reference our current world(s) and diverse aspects in them?
For example, biological contamination typically references - in an environment the presence of living organisms or agents derived by viruses, bacteria, fungi, and mammal and bird antigens that can cause many health effects. Radioactive contamination is understood as the presence of an unwanted radioactive substances on surfaces, or within solids, liquids or gases, where their presence is unintended or undesirable.
This course is a starting point for investigating this concept, its understanding in different areas and what kind of meanings are related to it in contemporary world. The course is not aiming at offering coherent answers or solutions concerning the term/concept, but it is expected that the participants critically think the use of the term and its significance - following the lines of the artistic and scientific perspectives offered by the lectures and readings.
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Assessment Methods and Criteria
valid for whole curriculum period:
-Presence: 80% on the course.
- Master-level students: Short oral presentation that addresses students individual interests/research and their relation to 2-3 topics addressed during the lecture-series.
-Doctoral-level students: a 2-3 page text that critically addresses students individual research in relation to 1-2 topics addressed during the lecture-series.
applies in this implementation
The expectation is that students are reading the given texts and relate their own interests and work to the readings and also to the lectures on the course. Lack of doing the readings, etc will show in your grade.
Workload
valid for whole curriculum period:
Contact study 12h, independent work 123h
applies in this implementation
There is quite little time spent in contact teaching: lectures and discussions.
There is a lot of time reserved for readings and own thinking - leading to articulations of interesting aspects for oneself and one's own work.
DETAILS
Study Material
valid for whole curriculum period:
Will be provided in syllabus
applies in this implementation
Readings TBA
Substitutes for Courses
valid for whole curriculum period:
Prerequisites
valid for whole curriculum period:
FURTHER INFORMATION
Further Information
valid for whole curriculum period:
A PhD student will be employed to organize the course and also to support designing its content together with Sederholm and Beloff.
Teaching Period:
2020-2021
(2021, 2022) - No teaching
Course Homepage: https://mycourses.aalto.fi/course/search.php?search=TAI-E315301
Registration for Courses: Sisu replaces Oodi on 9 August, 2021. Priority order to courses is according to the order of priority decided by the Academic committee for School of Arts, Design and Architecture: https://www.aalto.fi/en/services/registering-to-courses-and-the-order-of-priority-in-aalto-arts
Art Department major students who need the course for their degree are the first priority.
Details on the schedule
applies in this implementation
Tuesdays at 17-19
1.3. Short introduction /// 1.3. Hanna Husberg (arts - air pollution)
8.3. Luis Graca (science - immunology) /// 8.3. Cesar & Lois (bioarts - slime mold)
15.3. Erich Berger (art & science - radioactivity)
22.3. Helena Sederholm & Co (Aalto Arts - culture)
29.3. Discussions in small groups
5.4. Evaluation day