On April 10, 2019, Dr. Kim Landsbergen, associate professor of Biology and Environmental Science, presented at a special Art-Science Symposium at the US meeting of the International Association of Landscape Ecology in Fort Collins, CO. The theme of the conference was Conservation Innovation, and this special symposium on Art-Science Collaboration for Ecology, Conservation, and Sustainability highlighted current innovations as well as explored future collaborations. 

The symposium organizers reached out to Dr. Landsbergen because of her expertise in the area of Art-Science collaborations — more of her ArtScience projects can be viewed on her website. 

In her symposium talk titled, “Art Openings Are Open, Science Conferences Are Elite: Innovations We Can Learn from Ecological ArtScience Collaborations,” Dr. Landsbergen provided a overview of ArtScience ecological collaborations and addressed questions such as:

• What might contemporary ArtScience collaborations look like? How do artists and scientists differ and overlap in how they conduct their work, and share their work with the public?
• Why would an ArtScience collaboration benefit both Art and Science participants?
  Specifically, what new experiences and benefits might arise for ecologists through ArtScience collaboration?
• Moving beyond Broader Impacts, how can ArtScience work engage the hearts and minds of audiences in ways that data, charts, and technical reports don’t?

At the conclusion of her talk, Dr. Landsbergen provided some examples of her own work, including ArtScience collaborations completed at Antioch College. These include Invasive Species Bookmaking, Trees Experienced Through Augmented Reality, and Fire-dependent Pine Forest Printmaking. Dr. Landsbergen’s “INVASIVE Zine” project at Antioch College was a collaboration with multiple artists to: collect invasive plant fibers (Lonicera maackii), make paper, solicit written and visual art contributions, edit a book, and assemble and bind a book with content focused on and made of invasive biology. ARTrees is a collaboration with scientists, artists, computer scientists, and campus landscape managers to develop an augmented reality mobile app that users might use to engage with the ecosystem functions and other aspects of campus trees at The Ohio State University. Lastly, a new collaboration with a printmaker at Stockton University will focus on fire dynamics of the Pine Barrens of New Jersey, creating an ecology-based print to contribute to the 2019 portfolio of R&D Editions of Fine Art Prints by Artists, Scientists and Engineers.

An Ecosystem Ecologist and artist herself with work exhibited in juried shows, Dr. Landsbergen has also previously presented on ArtScience in many academic circles, including for the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, at the Association of Independent Colleges of Art & Design conference, and at the 100th Annual Meeting of the Ecology Society of America.