Discover is an interdisciplinary, collaborative STEAM project that explores the relationship between art and science. It was created through a recognition that graduate students and art students alike can often be so focused in their individual disciplines that they are limited in their scope of conversation outside their fields.
We are changing this by creating a space for collaboration.
The project consists of 12 pairs of students, one from RISD focused in arts and one from Brown Graduate School focused in the sciences. The show is an investigation into the many ways these two fields can inform and challenge each other. Through conversation and creation, we expand the capabilities of each field to communicate something new.
The Rooted Side Table
Ash, Fir plywood, discarded branches, plastic
This project blends the interests of artist Hannim Song in sustainable furniture design and of ecologist Brooke Osborne in forest ecosystems. The goal is to connect the users and viewers with the source of the materials used to produce the furniture piece - in this case, a tree. Prior to being cut, treated, and shaped into a rectangular, smooth table, it was an organism that served an important role in a complex ecosystem. The plastic signifies the fungi that take in the nutrition (nitrogen) from the soil and transferring through the roots up the tree. The Rooted Side Table is a reminder that what we buy, use, and discard comes from and goes back to nature and in turn, leaves its mark on our living environment.
