ESC: BioArt Village - Solidarity

Hidden in a green realm in Eindhoven lies BioArt Laboratories, a repurposed historical military complex in a dense forest. The cradle of many award winning innovations. It is a refreshing place where things are done differently. A place, unfinished, unpolished, provocative and alive.

At this location we are challenging the anthropocentric perspectives on economy, habitation and land by adopting key principles of the Symbiocene. The Symbiocene revolves around ecological and evolutionary thinking of the interconnectedness of life and all living things. Such symbioses are in stark contrast with current human influence and increasing dominance of climatic, biophysical and evolutionary processes.

BioArt Laboratories is an international orientated non-profit foundation, part of the basic national infrastructure of institutions, directly funded by the Dutch government. We specialise in the development of social and artistic projects that orientate on sustainability, innovation and the environment. Notably, we explore the boundaries between nature, science and art/culture with a hands-on approach and linking the old with the new, as this combination leads to new insights and surprising results.

Our mission is to stimulate and facilitate a new generation of talents to engage social issues through the combination of biotechnology and the arts/design, with a hands-on multidisciplinary approach. BioArt Laboratories believes that social dialogue, solidarity and cross-border exploration is important to society and (social)innovation towards a better world, especially in an era where biotechnology takes an ever-increasing role in sustainability solutions. By providing these talents the room to explore and experiment with what is currently possible on crossover disciplines and interchanging perspectives, a new generation is nurtured whose creations can bring new ways of thinking and innovation. BioArt Laboratories wants to consolidate her experience and extend it to young international aspirants in Europe, who want to immerse themselves in new social practices and grow both personally and professionally.

BioArt Laboratories has guided more than a hundred young artists and designers to the next step in their career, opened new possibilities for international bio-artists to engage with dozens of Dutch top research centers and organised various cultural events and expositions that inspired thousands. BioArt Laboratories was the first to introduce the combination of (bio)technology and art in the Dutch educational system, since then the combination of various projects, events and expositions has caused a surge of talents and teachers with an interest in these crossovers. Successful collaborations with parties such as the Dutch Waterboards, the European Space Agency, the Dutch Research Council and various social enterprises and universities have also contributed to this surge. This has been recognised by the Dutch Council for Culture and in 2020 BioArt Laboratories attained the highly sought after BIS-position, a statement for the highest quality and importance in the Dutch Cultural Infrastructure. BioArt Laboratories is also accredited as a teaching institution by the Dutch Samenwerkingsorganisatie Beroepsonderwijs Bedrijfsleven (SBB), an organisation that checks the quality of offered internships/ apprenticeships.

Our regular activities vary from workshops and projects to talent development, events, expositions and debates in order to exchange experiences or work together towards a goal. These activities are set up in a way to engage people to rethink or reframe their perspectives, broaden their horizons and see the interconnectedness of the involved disciplines with down-to-earth content and examples. For example, the project Tree Antenna brings young people and senior radio operators together to explore the implementation of a living network. A network made of cybernetic trees capable of communicating over long distances, breaking the monopoly on information technologies of the network society.

BioArt Laboratories is situated in a beautiful nature-rich location of 1,6 hectares of space in the middle of the green heart of the high-tech capital of Europe, Eindhoven (Netherlands). The location is just 10-20 minutes away from the creative district Strijp-S, the city centre, the Eindhovense Airport and train station. The foundation's unique location and facilities like laboratories and workplaces offer an inspiring and empowering experience with various opportunities for young people that help them learn and develop new skills. Participants can stay over at one of the buildings in BioArt Village and food, accommodation and bike usage are offered within the package. With a decade of experience in talent development and bringing people together, BioArt Laboratories aims to provide a quality learning environment for European youths, who do not always have the opportunity to develop themselves or explore their aspirations.