Liverpool LASER is part of the worldwide series of Leonardo Art Science Evening Rendezvous (LASER) Talks sponsored by Leonardo, the International Society for Art, Sciences and Technology (Leonardo/ISAST). LASER talks are an international programme of free evening gatherings that bring artists and scientists together for informal presentations and conversations on art, science and technology.
Liverpool LASER is one of only 40 LASER hosts operating worldwide and with every LASER being unique to its own community, Liverpool LASER hopes to bring together interested individuals to explore and cultivate the growing art/science/technology community in the North West.
Liverpool LASER hosted by Professor Caroline Wilkinson, Director Liverpool School of Art and Design, and Mark Roughley, MA Art in Science programme tutor, is supported by the MA Art in Science programme, which aims to bring artists and scientists together to explore collaborative approaches in Art/Science research and practice.
‘Faces and Identity’ focused on changing perceptions and identities of the human face and took place on Wednesday 14 March 2018 at Liverpool School of Art and Design.
July 2018 Liverpool LASER – ‘The Perception Machine’
‘The Perception Machine’ asked what is the role of art in science, and science in art? and took place on Wednesday 4 July at Tate Liverpool.
November 2018 Liverpool LASER – ‘Broken Symmetries’
‘Broken Symmetries’ brought together artists who aim to understand and question the physical world by navigating the shifting realities of modern science, and supported the opening of a new international exhibition that brings a close to the three year partnership with Arts at Cern and FACT. The event took place on Thursday 22 November 2018 at FACT Liverpool.
April 2019 Liverpool LASER – ‘Leonardo's Laboratory’
‘Leonardo's Laboratory’ supported the Walker Art Gallery’s "Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing" exhibition which was one of a series of 12 simultaneous exhibitions, each exhibiting 12 of da Vinci’s drawings, in celebration of his achievements on the 500 year anniversary of his death. The event took place on Thursday 11 April 2019 at the Walker Art Gallery Liverpool.
August 2019 Liverpool LASER – ‘Art & Science Exchange’
On Tuesday 27 and Wednesday 28 August 2019, the MA Art in Science programme at Liverpool School of Art and Design hosted an Art & Science Exchange workshop with members of the Biochemical Society. The exchange was held at the John Lennon Art and Design Building, in the Public Exhibition Space and X-Gallery amongst the MA Art in Science student's end of programme postgraduate exhibition, which showcases the outcomes of their three month research projects. These projects served as a basis for investigation of specific art-science interactions, and were supported by open discussions, hands on activities including haptic-optic drawing, clay modelling and 3D haptic digital sculpting of bacteria and viruses, which culminated in a Liverpool LASER talk.
October 2019 Liverpool LASER - Oceans 4.0
‘Oceans 4.0’ supported the opening of the ‘Oceans 4.0’ exhibition at FACT Liverpool, which presented three artists’ projects that monitor, reflect or imagine the future of our threatened oceans. The exhibition was developed as part of the European Media Art Platform, co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the EU. The event took place on Saturday 12 October 2019 at FACT Liverpool.
March 2020 – Liverpool LASER ‘Digital Humans’
Liverpool LASER collaborated with the Immersive Liverpool group for discussions surrounding “Digital Humans” from 'resurrection tech' to 'artificial encounters' with virtual entities. The event took place on Tuesday 3 March 2020 at Avenue HQ, Liverpool and was supported by Barclays Eagle Labs.
November 2021 – Liverpool LASER ‘The Collective Phenomena of Fanchon Fröhlich’
‘The Collective Phenomena of Fanchon Fröhlich’ took place on Thursday 18 November 2021 at the John Lennon Art & Design Building. For two decades Fanchon was ‘Collective Phenomena’’s creative driving force, being informed by her deep understanding of the unconscious mind and its potential to change the world. Speakers talked about this formidable artist and intellectual to inspire a new generation. In addition to talks, three 3D digital portraits of Fanchon Fröhlich created by Face Lab LJMU were exhibited in the X-Gallery.
