Art and science: a learned jumble

Science at the service of art, or art at the service of science? Or does the mixing of genres simply stem from a common agreement to play both sides, with the idea of opening up new spaces for creation, reflection and mediation?

One might imagine them to be poles apart. Yet art and the scientific approach share many features in common: an initial curiosity, the exploration of new creative or reflective horizons, the time for the process of investigation and creation, and finally a restitution, whether academic or public.

The mountains inspire artists and scientists in a combined approach, as demonstrated by several projects currently being carried out within Labex ITTEM, and conceived as spaces for encounters with society.

On January 29, visitors to the 24th Rencontres de Die, in the Drôme region of France, were treated to an interactive sound map from the Récits des eaux et des rives research and creation project, led by geographer Sabine Girard in collaboration with sound documentarist Caroline Fontana, illustrator Yann Degruel and geographer Samuel Pinjon. Or how to sensitively convey the results of a survey on the relationship between local residents and the water in their area. The presentation of this map served as the basis for a discussion with the public on the public management of drinking water, with representatives of the Diois Community of Communes. This work was recently published on the Visionscarto website.

The event also provided an opportunity to discover the research project Réseau – Entre l’eau et nous, devised by geographer Kirsten Koop and the association La Maison Ateliers. On January 30, a live show presented the results of surveys carried out by citizens in the Trièves region on the issue of water, based on their concerns and with the idea of proposing a constructive alternative to controversy. Raising awareness in a different way, through art, is also the challenge taken up by the Strates collective in its research-creation project L’air de rien, currently on show at Grenoble Alpes University, in relation to the issue of air pollution.

In the Hautes-Alpes region, the public was invited to join in a sound walk on February 7 and 8 in Montgenèvre, as part of the Commémor’Action des mort-es des frontières event. Inspired by the research work of geographer Cristina Del Biaggio, this immersive walk, created in collaboration with the Bandite collective, proposes to follow in the footsteps of Blessing Matthew, a young Nigerian woman who died in May 2018 in a context of systemic border violence. ” The project uses art to stimulate the reappropriation of history and collective memory, that of the dead on the borders, invisibilized in official historiography, ” explains the researcher.

Art can also accompany research to the summit. After scientifically reconstructing the first ascent of Mont Aiguille – a project recounted in the documentary Retour au Mont Aiguille – historian Stéphane Gal proposes an original scientific approach, offering a musical account of this climb to “rediscover the musical and sensory dimension ” and highlight the mountain in its ” ancient cultural dimension “. Historians, art historians and musicians are all involved in the Mont en chantée project, which will be presented to the public in a variety of ways.

Whatever their approach, projects combining the arts and sciences shed new light on our relationship with the world, and in their own way offer food for thought in a turbulent context. Labex ITTEM remains open to such proposals through its various calls for projects.

Discover the Mont en chantée project teaser