The Supernormal
Research Question
What are the effects of Niko Tinbergen’s concept of the super normal stimulus on human behaviour in general, and more specifically, what are the implications of this kind of scientific knowledge on art, art theory and art education?
Project Description
As an interdisciplinary artist, I create audiovisual installations, compose music for theatre and film and also initiate collaborative projects at the intersection of theatre, media art and music.
I have always had a fascination for the influence of historical scientific and technological discoveries on contemporary culture. New technological inventions often led to new philosophical movements and new forms and theories of art. From this perspective i intentionally search for new forms of art and new interdisciplinary contexts in which art, science and technology can mutually reinforce each other.
During my fellowhip at NIAS, I will be working on my upcoming project The supernormal, a more theoretical follow-up of my interdisciplinary art project De meeuwen van Tinbergen.
Apart from doing more research on the effects of Niko Tinbergen’s concept of the supernormal stimulus on human behaviour in general, i will be focusing on the implications of this kind of scientific knowledge on art, art theory and art education.
During the residency, i will try to set up an interdisciplinary dialogue between scientists, artists and art theorists. The findings, questions and responses will also be detailed on a weblog kept during the fellowship. The outcome of all research from both projects will hopefully be collected in an illustrated publication (in cooperation with Jap Sam Books).