Mind Explorer - Between Art and Astronomy (2018)

... is a 'work in progress' project that explores the interactions between the arts and astronomical sciences, investigating how both fields might influence daily life. Through interviews with experts, factors and concepts are identified and visualized as networks. These networks serve as fragments of a map – a weave of entities – that help us understand and sense how art and astronomy interact with each other and potentially influence everyday life. It is a journey into the abstract structures of our imagination.

The work will be displayed during the 'Our Place in Space' exhibition at the Natural History Museum in Vienna and will be expanded and updated until the end of the exhibition in September. The opening is on June 19, 2018. Until then, I am seeking numerous interview partners from the fields of art and astronomy, as well as enthusiastic laypeople. Interviews begin by asking how individuals became interested in art or astronomy and what the most significant influences were or still are. Following that, participants are asked to draw an influence diagram capturing all relevant factors and their interactions.

Previous interviews have lasted between 45 and 180 minutes, with most being completed in around an hour. It is also possible to conduct interviews via Skype or respond to my request on Quora.

The result of these surveys and interviews will be a drawing similar to 'Relational.' More examples can be found here:
http://www.fcmappers.net/joomla/images/stories/agg_map2.jpg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuzzy_cognitive_map#/media/File:FCMdrug520.png
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Fuzzy-Cognitive-map-for-Mexico-citys-water-availability-system_fig1_284733557

Please feel free to contact me at the following email address to ask any preliminary questions about the interviews or to schedule an interview:
michaelbachhofer{at}gmx{dot}net