Symposium ‘Drawing Instruments: or how to calibrate an artist?’
On 16 and 17 March, 2017, the first yearly symposium of the Research Centre for Arts, Autonomy and the Public Sphere entitled ‘Drawing Instruments: or how to calibrate an artist?’ took place. The symposium was the formal closing of the interdisciplinary research studio Institute of Calibration (led by Dear Hunter) which addressed the topic of artistic research by exploring thinking-through-making. The first day, March 16th, was devoted to a hands-on workshop in which artists, academics, and other interested people were invited to explore how drawing instruments can help to think of and critically discuss artistic research practices. In their presentations, five speakers reflected upon the theme of the artist as research instrument: which lenses can be used to view the world around us, and can drawing be viewed as an academic research method? These talks were alternated with drawing sessions in which all participants were invited to produce drawings and to subsequently discuss their ideas. On the second day the symposium was formally rounded up with a key-note speech by Lorraine Daston, director of the Max Plank Institute for the history of science in Berlin. In her lecture, which was co-hosted by the Master of Scientific Illustration, Daston magnificently addressed the topic of Epistemic Images. The symposium was complemented by an exhibition of work produced in the Institute of Calibration research studio, led by Dear Hunter.
