ABOUT the Synergy Project
Background artwork: “Block Island” — Ruth A. B. Clegg
The Synergy Project began in 2020 as a offshoot of an exhibit titled Synergy that was created by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and ran from 2013–2014. This new iteration of Synergy was first dubbed Synergy II, but is now what we refer to as the original Below the Surface exhibition. In this new project, Art League RI (ALRI) teamed up with the WHOI Graduate Program in Oceanography to revitalize and expand upon the ideas of the previous exhibit. The goal was to create a set of artwork that could be used to create a public interest in ocean science and discuss scientific concepts in a digestible way.
“Oceans of Time I” — Marcy Cohen
Below the surface
The artists and scientists self-selected to form eleven artist-scientist teams. Their goal was to communicate ocean science concepts through art. Some of these participants were veterans from the first Synergy exhibit, but many were newcomers who were joining for the first time. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the planning and much of the collaborative work done on the project throughout 2020 was conducted online. Given the novelty of such a situation at the time, this provided its own set of hurdles for the teams working on Below the Surface. However, they persevered, and after more than a year of working together, the artist-scientist teams exhibited the first version of their work at the Falmouth Art Center in May 2021. This was followed by a virtual exhibition showing more finalized versions of the work in October of that year.
Below the Surface II
Following in the footsteps of Below the Surface, another exhibition, Below the Surface II, was created. This exhibition called on artists from around the United States to submit artwork inspired by ocean science. These pieces of art were then placed before a jury of figures from the art industry to decide which works would be displayed as part of Below the Surface II. Below the Surface II was displayed in June 2022 at the ALRI gallery and alongside work from the original Below the Surface exhibition in July 2022 at the Main Gallery of the University of Rhode Island (URI). Artwork from both exhibitions was later displayed in January 2023 at the Falmouth Art Center.
Visitors at the Synergy: Below the Surface II opening at URI
Information about The Synergy Project’s display at the Exploration Zone.
The Synergy Project at the Exploration Zone
The latest Synergy display is at the Exploration Zone at the Ocean Race Newport Stopover. Scientists from the original Below the Surface exhibition have put together new educational content to augment the projects they helped create. Artwork from The Synergy Project will be on display alongside this new educational content at the Exploration Zone in May 2023.
Stay Tuned
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