Interface: The Interdisciplinary Nature of Drawing

12.30-13.30 (BST) Thursday 24th June 2021

A discussion and Q&A with artists and researchers about how drawing can work across disciplines.

Deborah Harty, Chair of the Drawing Research Group (DRG) at Loughborough University will open this event with an introduction to the work of the group, highlighting some of the research undertaken by its members. This will be followed by a presentation by the artist Claude Heath. Claude has collaborated with John Stell, a computer scientist and mathematician from Leeds University, and will discuss their joint article to be published in Leonardo: ‘Out of sight but not out of mind: A diagrammatic conversation on relational drawing.’ This article reflects on their longstanding dialogue, using a common visual vocabulary of loops, connections and negative space, plus a shared interest in exploring the physicality of practice.

Saul Albert, Lecturer in Social Sciences (Social Psychology), who has collaborated with Claude on other interdisciplinary projects which use drawing as a research tool, will then lead a discussion with Claude and members of the DRG followed by a wider Q&A.

Claude Heath is an artist who has exhibited drawings widely, including at The British Museum, The Henry Moore Institute, The Centre for Drawing at Wimbledon School of Art, Pinakothek der Moderne Munich, Museum fur Gegenwartskunst Seigen, and Kupferstichkabinett Museum of Prints and Drawings Berlin. His PhD ‘Drawing out interaction: Lines around shared space’ was from the COGSCI group at Queen Mary University of London. Find out more about Claude’s work here.

John Stell is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Computing at Leeds University, working on spatial knowledge representation in Artificial Intelligence. His background includes a BA in Fine Art from Leeds College of Art and interdisciplinary projects spanning computation, mathematics, fine art, and the humanities.

This event is part of Interface: a week of discussions and events that showcase interdisciplinary practice.