How Cooperation Works: Exhibition brings science and art together

What makes a society resilient? Why do people help each other in times of crisis? And what impact do our choices have on others? The exhibition How Cooperation Works invites visitors to reflect on these questions through two interactive artworks. In October and November, the exhibition is coming to Groningen.

The exhibition grew out of a unique collaboration between artists and researchers from the Sustainable Cooperation Program (SCOOP), an interdisciplinary research programme based at the University of Groningen. SCOOP brings together researchers from different disciplines to explore how sustainable cooperation emerges and can be sustained. Rather than simply publishing their findings, artists Maartje de Goede and Quita Felix worked closely with SCOOP researchers, translating scientific insights into interactive artworks that invite visitors to experience the research for themselves.

Researchers Liesbeth Heyse and Wike Been from the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences played a key role in bringing the project together. The artists also drew on research by Lisa Willemsen and Eline Heikamp, both PhD candidates at the same faculty.

Cooperation in times of crisis

In De Noodzaak, artist Maartje de Goede explores how we prepare for uncertain times. The work draws on research into cooperation during crises, citizen-led initiatives and informal support networks. The installation poses a simple but thought-provoking question: is resilience about having a well-stocked emergency kit, or is it about knowing who to turn to when we need help?

The artwork invites visitors to reflect on how we can prepare collectively, and on the role social networks play when unexpected events disrupt our daily lives.

The impact of our choices

Quita Felix’s artwork Spillover explores another dimension of cooperation. Small actions can sometimes have far-reaching consequences that we may not even realise. In conversations with researchers, Felix explored themes such as caregiving, reciprocity, and the ways our behaviour can affect the lives of others.

In this interactive installation, visitors experience how people, events and choices are interconnected. The work shows that cooperation is not only about working towards shared goals, but also about the unexpected ways in which we influence one another.

SCOOP

The SCOOP transdisciplinary research and training centre is based at the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences of the University of Groningen. Liesbeth Heyse and Wike Been were the key individuals in the putting together of this project. The artists also drew on the research of Lisa Willemsen and Eline Heikamp for the artworks, who are both PhD students at the Faculty.

An invitation to talk

How Cooperation Works does not tell visitors how they should work together. Instead, the exhibition invites them to reflect. What does responsibility mean to you? When do you help someone else? And what role do trust and connection play in everyday life?

The two artworks can be experienced individually, but perhaps the most meaningful part comes afterwards: the conversations visitors have with one another.

Exhibition dates in Groningen

• 5–25 October: Energy Academy Europe

• 27 October–13 November: Restaurant, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences