In an afternoon MAXchats brings together leading artists and scientists for 3 panel discussions.

Tickets for May 18 – MAXchats

Chat 1
CRISPR (un) commons: artists explore the future of genomic innovation,
3:00-3:40pm
Panelists Andy Cavatorta, Kevin Doxson, Alison Irvine, Dorothy Santos, and Sheng-Ying Pao
Moderated by Stochastic Labs founder and filmmaker Vero Bollow
Join artists and scientists from Berkeley-based Stochastic Labs and the Innovative Genomics Institute’s collaborative residency program, CRISPR (un) commons, as they envision new interpretations and ways of engaging with the future of genome engineering. Art can be an effective way to facilitate conversations and explore concepts that can elevate our understanding of scientific advances.

Dorothy R. Santos is a Filipina American writer, curator, and artist whose writing appears in art21, Art Practical, Rhizome, Hyperallergic, Ars Technica, Vice Motherboard, and SF MOMA’s Open Space. She currently serves as a co-curator for REFRESH, a curatorial collective in partnership with Eyebeam, the program manager for the Processing Foundation, and host for the podcast PRNT SCRN produced by Art Practical. Ph.D. candidate in Film and Digital Media at the University of California, Santa Cruz as a Eugene V. Cota-Robles fellow.

Kevin Doxsen received his PhD in Biophysics from the lab of Jennifer Doudna at UC Berkeley. Following grad school, Kevin joined the Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) as the Science Communications Specialist. Kevin also gives public talks, writes op-ed articles, and collaborates with various community groups to engage, equip, and empower different stakeholders with accurate information. Disruptive technologies are rapidly advancing, and Kevin wants to make sure no one is left behind.

Alison Irvine is a performance artist and biologist. She is the founding organizer and an Executive Board Member of the Biodesign Challenge — a global competition and educational program that pairs art and science students to envision the future of biotechnology. She has written articles on the intersection of art, science, and social justice for Imagine Science Films, Popular Science Magazine, and The Center for Genetics and Society.

Andy Cavatorta is an artist and sculptor working with physical sound and robotics. Recent collaborations include Björk and Matthew Herbert. Recent exhibits include MoMA, TED, The Royal Opera House and short documentaries by National Geographic, Vice, and Stella Artois.He is the recipient of the Lincoln Prize and  a graduate of the MIT Media Lab with two decades of software engineering experience.

Dr. Sheng-Ying Pao leads teams in both Asia and the US to create technology-enabled art and interdisciplinary innovation. Her creations have won several major awards, including the iF Design Award, the Red Dot Design Award, MIT TechX Innovation Prize, and the Best Design of the Year 2014 by London Design Museum. She was named MIT Cisco Fellow for two consecutive years, and selected as the first MIT PhD Arts Scholar, Pao received her PhD from MIT Media Lab.

Filmmaker Vero Bollow tells stories about science, technology, and the idiosyncrasies of the human spirit. Her international feature, The Wind and the Water was nominated for the grand jury prize at the Sundance film festival. In 2014, she founded Stochastic Labs to support pioneering creative ventures in the SF bay area including. Vero is also the director of the Minerva Foundation.

Chat 2
Jumpsuits: The Attire of Exploring
3:50-4:30pm
Panelists: Penny Boston, Andrea Lauer, Dr. Mary Beth Wilhelm
Moderated By: Kay Matschulatt
In this intersection of fashion and science, we look at jumpsuits–clothing for extreme conditions. As female leaders and explorers are scrutinized differently than men,this chat will interrogate how what they wear can reshape the narrative of who they are and how they claim power. What clothes allow them to jump in rather than just lean in? How does attire support their work as explorers?

Dr. Penny Boston works in the fields of micro-and astro-biology, having pioneered collaboration between the two fields.

Andrea Lauer is a costume/set designer and fashion stylist. Her work has been seen on Broadway and internationally with Recent credits including Richard The II at The Old Globe, Lovely Rita, a multimedia event in celebration of the Beatles 50th release of Sgt. Peppers, and A Chorus Line at the MUNY. As a stylist her work can be seen in Rolling Stone, Vogue, Interview, OUT Magazine, and red carpet events.

Dr. Mary Beth Wilhelm A planetary scientist and astrobiologist at NASA Ames Research Center in California, she is working to design new types of instrumentation for life detection and in 2015, she was part of the team that discovered liquid water brines on Mars. Dr. Wilhelm completed her Ph.D. in Planetary Science at Georgia Tech in 2017 and her bachelor’s in Earth & Planetary Science at Cornell University in 2012.

Kay Matschullat produces and directs performance around the globe. She has directed premiers of plays by Nobel prize-winning playwright Derek Walcott, Playwright-President Vaclav Havel, and Ariel Dorfman’s WIDOWS awarded Kennedy Center’s New American Play Award. Artistic residencies: Dartmouth College, Harvard College, and Calarts. Formerly Full-time faculty member at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, visiting lecturer at Princeton, currently visiting lecturer at Harvard. Grants include NEA Fellowship, TCG Fellowship, Fulbright Senior Specialist. She is producing director of MAX.

Chat 3
Pas de Deux: Machine Human Interface and the Creative Space
4:40-5:20PM
Presenters Sasha Samochina, Alice Sheppard, Alexander Reben
Moderated by Stochastic Labs founder and filmmaker Vero Bollow
Closing Remarks Kay Matschullat

Robots as our Partners – artist roboticist Alexander Reben, Dancer choreographer Alice Sheppard, and JPL visual Operations Producer Sasha Samochina discuss their collaborations with robots and the future of machine – human creative interface. 

Sasha Samochina Sasha Samochina is an Immersive Visualization Producer at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. She joined the team at JPL after working in New York in the fields of video and web development and in Chicago where she was a Media Producer at The Field Museum of Natural History.

Alice Sheppard Alice Sheppard took her first dance class in order to make good on a dare; she loved moving so much that she resigned her academic professorship in order to begin a career in dance. She studied with Kitty Lunn, made her debut with Infinity Dance Theater and joined AXIS Dance Company where she toured nationally and taught in the company’s education and outreach programs. Alice has danced in projects with Ballet Cymru, GDance, and Marc Brew in the United Kingdom. In the United States, she has worked with Full Radius Dance, Marjani Forté, MBDance, Infinity Dance Theater, and Steve Paxton.

Alexander Reben is an artist and MIT trained roboticist who explores humanity through the lens of art and technology. Using “art as experiment” his work allows for the viewer to experience the future within metaphorical contexts. Alexander’s work probes the inherently human nature of the artificial. Using tools such as artificial philosophy, synthetic psychology, perceptual manipulation and technological magic, he brings to light our inseparable evolutionary entanglement to invention which has unarguably shaped our way of being.

Interactive Chat 4
SPACE IN YOUR FACE! Adjourn to MAX Lounge, have a refreshment and contribute to the conversation.
5:30pm-6PM
Presenter: Julia DeMarines

Space in Your Face! is a variety show that highlights a topic in space science and is curated by Oakland-based astrobiologist and educator, Julia DeMarines. These events incorporate space-themed cover songs, humorous science content, hands-on demonstrations, and a quiz at the end with PRIZES! This special Space in Your Face! will be about exoplanets, or should I say, eXXX-o-planets? Join us for a short 30 min adult-themed presentation on how we detect exoplanets. Audience participation is encouraged!

Julia DeMarines works at the UC Berkeley SETI Research Center, the Chabot Space & Science Center, and Blue Marble Space. She is a National Geographic Explorer and Grosvenor Teacher Fellow, and a 2019 AGU Voices for Science advocate. Her research involves detecting life in the Universe through biosignatures and technosignatures.

Tickets for May 18 – MAXchats