2nd Art&Science Day on 27 February 2025
At the second Art&Science Day at the Institute of Molecular Biosciences, six creative hands-on stations showed that science is everything else than boring.
We invited interested parties, especially children and young people, to an afternoon where they could discover new things and find creative ways into science. They could try out comics, microscopy art and protein modelling, among other things, or unleash their creativity by designing a special biomembrane.
In addition, presentations by science communicator and project manager Gabriel Dörner, MA (Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft, Open Innovation in Science CentreVienna) and a mini comic workshop by science communicator and comic author Dr Ariane Pessentheiner provided further insights into communication at the interface between science and art.
Further information at biophycom.uni-graz.at
We are part of FÄKT!
Lena Bauernhofer and Ariane Pessentheiner provide insights into our everyday laboratory life and explain membrane proteins and their research in breast cancer. For this purpose, they became part of FÄKT, an initiative supported by the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), which aims to get young people interested in the research of Austrian scientists and provide them with accompanying material for schools.
The videos can be seen on Instagram and YouTube and can of course also be used for teaching!
Science Communication Project BioPhyCom
BioPhyCom brings our research to schoolchildren! Based on the project"New nanodiscs for the investigation of GPCR signalling" (NanoBelt for short, FWF I5359-N), Ariane Pessentheiner developed a science communication project aimed at children and young people aged 8-15.
In the BioPhysicsComic workshops at schools or at the university, a knowledge base in the field of biomembranes and their research is first built up in a playful and experimental way. The pupils are then instructed in how to apply this knowledge in the form of science comics. This involves developing characters and creating their individual storyline.
The playful and creative approach to a complex topic breaks down prejudices against STEM subjects and also conveys the importance of basic research. Last but not least, the workshops are intended to arouse curiosity and interest in the natural sciences.
Further information is available on the project homepage or directly from Ariane Pessentheiner.
Science meets art, art meets science: that was the motto of the first Art& Science Day on 21 March 2024, which was held as part of the International Biophysics Week at the Institute of Molecular Biosciences at the University of Graz.
At this event, participants of all ages were invited to unleash their creativity at five hands-on stations. Not only were they able to try out different art techniques, but they were also able to work with researchers from our institute. A long comic membrane, a phospholipid dance group and many colourful molecule models were created. The participants also built their own microscopes, which they then used to immerse themselves in the microscopic world of animals and tissues and presented them as works of art.
The evening was rounded off with two presentations on the topic of scientific design and illustrations by Verena Resch under the motto "Make Science Beautiful" (luminous-lab.com) and by Ariane Pessentheiner, who showed how comics can be used to present complex content in a simple way.
The children and adults clearly enjoyed this successful event and, in addition to great works of art, certainly took home some scientific insights.
Open Lab - Biophysics Week 2023
24.03.2023, 18:00 - 20:00
During the international Biophysics Week 2023 we invited interested guests to a lecture on "Membrane biophysics and the drugs of tomorrow" by Sandro Keller and Georg Pabst, followed by a lab tour. Afterwards, we met in a get-together to discuss the successful evening in a lively atmosphere.
