Arts|Science Initiative collaborations inspire new directions, approaches to research

In a hall full of scientists and artists, Qin Xu, Ivo Peters and Iddo Aharony were the ones who broke the ice at the May 14 presentations of the 2014 graduate collaboration grant projects sponsored by the Arts. The trio of graduate students kicked off the evening at the Logan Center for the Arts by introducing Breaking Ice , the literal focus of their project. Xu and Peters, graduate students in physics, and Aharony, a graduate student in music, crushed and melted ice in the laboratory, recording the entire process. Next, they used their data and video to create a multimedia composition that incorporated live cello, interactive electronics, and video. "This collaboration was an incredible opportunity to open up a whole new dimension to my creative work," said Aharony, by working next to scholars in physics, a very different discipline from his own. "Together, we were able to brainstorm and ultimately create a distinct artwork that would never have been conceived in any other way. I have no doubt that this collaboration and its fruits will continue to inspire my creative work moving forward." The composition attempts to evoke the thawing and shattering of glaciers as a result of global warming by studying reduced-scale models of these enormous structures.