What happens when Arts and Science collide?

Back to bloglist

STEAM has been an exciting journey to the realm between arts and science. It has certainly sparked many inspiring conversations and a strong interest to dig deeper and see further. I think for many of us it is quite natural to believe there is something in common with great art and science, though it is really tough to actually start pinpointing what it is.

Leonardo da Vinci, image by Henna Suortti.
Image by Henna Suortti.

I think the one aspect that inspired most conversation was the connection to ancient philosophy, masters that were both artists and scientists, in an age where our society wasn’t as siloed as it is today. Taking that historical perspective reminded us once again of basic things of life, our need to understand and explain the world we live in, and our own role in it as human beings. 

Incredible advances in science and technology have enabled us a living environment that we hardly could even dream of even just a few hundred years ago. At the same time however, we are yearning for more answers than just science can give us. We are hopefully on our way to a better balance between arts, science, and other elements of better and more sustainable lives.

– Silja Suntola, project manager, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences
STEAMProcess – Innovating the transition process from STEM to STEAM approach in science, teaching and training

 

 

Introducing the (A) in STEM Processes

This publication has arts & science cases collected from all across the globe in the pursuit of wanting to understand how the arts and science collide. These cases were collected by all our project partners from the different corners of Europe, each bringing their own point of view and understanding of the themes with them.

Steam phases
STEAM phases. Image by Henna Suortti.

As we analyzed the case data, we formed the three phases: Insight, Process and Output. This thinking follows a very general model of any project. First, we have the idea, next we plan and create it, and lastly we show the end product. Categorizing these arts and science cases into the unique phases helped us to understand what kind of collision exists already between them.

Read the publication here: STEAMProcess – Introducing the (A) in STEM Processes (xamk.fi)

 

STEAMProcess Methodology Handbook

The STEAM Process handbook is a practical tool addressed to trainers, both in the formal and informal education fields, to implement STEAM practices within their own organizations, schools, universities, academies.

The handbook is divided into three sections:

WHY → References to explain the importance of the STEAM approach both from a theoretical point of view (importance of transversal skills to face the challenges of the contemporary world) and from a practical point of view (new job opportunities).

WHAT → Description of the key concepts that define a STEAM practice.

HOW → Three original activities, created specifically for the STEAM Process project, corresponding to the three main phases of a creative process:

  • INSIGHT → (RE)CREATE ART, an activity to enhance the awareness skills of the learners
  • PROCESS → USELESS MACHINE, an activity to enhance the creative skills of the learners
  • OUTPUT → ARTSCIENCE PROJECT, an activity to enhance the social impact of learners’ projects and ideas

The handbook contains tips for trainers, to facilitate the autonomous implementation of the activities, and the BE INSPIRED boxes, to explore concrete examples of STEAM good practices developed at European level.

Read and download the STEAMProcess Methodology Handbook here [PDF, 724Kb]

 

STEAMProcess Game for training students and STEM professionals in artistic skills

The STEAM Process game is an educational tool for the training of students and STEM professionals in Artistic Skills, in order to stimulate a STEAM approach to research and design. Download the game set, print and cut the cards and templates, and start playing!

Download the printable STEAMProcess Game Set here [PDF, 2.26Mb]

 

STEAM: Why Arts Matter Podcast

STEAM: Why Arts Matter is a podcast for those people who want to understand how the arts contribute to our society and are revolutionizing future education.  

This podcast is part of the STEAMProcess project, an European Erasmus+ Project developed and coordinated by Xamk, Changemakers AB, Materahub, Sineglossa and Conexiones Improbables. The project has the ambition of fostering disruptive innovation and promotes the use of artistic soft-skills in science/tech education and practice. This podcast is produced by Materahub. 

Thank you for listening to our podcast!

 

EPISODE 1: From STEM to STEAM – with Silja Suntola

Introducing the letter A of the STEAM project, Silja Suntola talks about how the arts have the power to enchant. They are ‘technologies of enchantment’ that possess the ability to dazzle, bewitch and captivate their recipients as if exerting a hypnotic influence.  The agency of art is not in itself physical but is the result of the expectations, understandings and definitions that have been inscribed on the work of art by the social fields that give it an almost magical agency.

About the Guest:

 

EPISODE 2: The Artistic Thinking Approach – with Alessia Tripaldi

How does art ‘go into action’? To answer these questions, we must first move away from a conception of art as a system of communication, a vehicle of meaning or a mechanism for creating meaning, and instead approach it as ‘a matter of doing’.  

“The role of art is no longer to form imaginary and utopian realities, but to actually be ways of living and models of action within the existing realm, whatever the scale chosen by the artist”. Bourriaud (2002:13)

About the Guest:

 

EPISODE 3: Futures Need Arts – with Roberto Gómez de la Iglesia

Transdisciplinarity connotes a research strategy that crosses many disciplinary boundaries to create a holistic approach.It applies to research efforts focused on problems that cross the boundaries of two or more disciplines, such as research on effective information systems for biomedical research (see bioinformatics), and can refer to concepts or methods that were originally developed by one discipline, but are now used by several others, such as ethnography, a field research method originally developed in anthropology but now widely used by other disciplines.

About the Guest:

 

EPISODE 4: The Industries of Culture and Creativity – with Paolo Montemurro

Digitalization, competition and automation favor those whose work is easy to scale but hard to imitate and routinise. The creative industries are such an example: they create stories and experiences that can be distributed across multiple media and easily exported; they supply services that enable their clients to stand out in crowded markets, and they rely on talent performing creative and artistic tasks that are hard to replace with robots and algorithms.

The sector is already a vital part of our economies, growing twice as fast as other sectors and employing over two million people. Technological developments like 5G connectivity, augmented reality and widespread artificial intelligence create further opportunities. This is why it is important to acknowledge the creative industries as a strategically important sector for the entire society.

About the Guest:

 

EPISODE 5: Creativity is Transforming the Labor Market – with Tom Løyche

In a complex and rapidly changing environment, marked by a growing uncertainty in the planning and definition of sustainable development strategies, creativity has started to represent a key factor for companies, both for competitiveness and innovation. Indeed, more and more companies throughout the world assert that, in addition to scientific and technological skills, one of the critical skills needed for innovation to happen, and to be of value for society, is creativity. It offers alternative perspectives, inspires surprising directions, and can act as catalysts for a successful and socially responsible transformation of industries into products and new social, ecological and economic models.

About the Guest:

 

Read more about the project: https://www.xamk.fi/steam

steam logos

With the support of the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

creative methods