Department of Search
Aardschap foundation
DISCIPLINES
Editorial, Print
Showcasing the fruitful intersection of art and science through a playful design
DISCIPLINES
Editorial, Print
About the book
‘Department of Search: Where Art and Science Create Debatable Futures’ explores the unique journey of the Department of Search, established in 2014 at Science Park Utrecht. For three years, this artist-run department experimented with action research interventions, fostering new encounters between art and science. This book reveals their findings and speculates on the potential of shared spaces to address fundamental future questions.
The Department’s method is straightforward: artists explore university premises, gathering clues, ideas, and inspiration. They then share their discoveries with local scientists, seeking shared values and potential outcomes. This collaboration often—though not always—yields a broad spectrum of potential futures.
About the Design
Department of Search is a compelling publication that effectively combines persuasive design with a powerful message. Designed by Studio Renate Boere, the book visually captures the synergy between art and science. It illustrates the experimental space needed to break through conventional assumptions, methods, and research questions, fostering new ideas in both disciplines.
Starting from the concept of ‘free space,’ the designers created a playful and layered design, encouraging exploration and bending traditional rules. The book’s core features an abstract visualization of free space, creating an optical illusion as readers flip through the pages. Additionally, a portrait gallery showcases historical successes of art and science collaborations.
The close collaboration among initiators, writers, and designers continuously enriched the book with imagery, quotes, and clever design solutions. Remarkably folded pages structure the book, containing hidden secrets, while a bright yellow insert stimulates the imagination by declaring where the future starts. The design represents experimentation and opportunity, inspiring readers to take action.By exploring the intersection between art and science, the book unveils new landscapes of possibility, where imagination and inquiry reshape our understanding of what is possible. This collision generates not just answers, but the most profound questions of our future
“Persuasive in its design telling a convincing message.”
“There’s lots to explore, rules are being bent.”
Colophon
Size: 17 x 12 cm
Binding: Paperback
Language: English
Number of pages: 320
Editorial Board: Carlijn Diesfeldt, Cynthia Hathaway, Melle Smets
Editor: Ed van Hinte
Texts: Carlijn Diesfeldt, Melle Smets, Cynthia Hathaway, Ed van Hinte (Cluing in, Interviews, Shared Values, No Boundaries)
Most of the quotes were taken out of the expert meetings of the Zero Footprint Campus, and interviews by Saskia Naafs for the Zero Footprint Campus newspaper publication.
Drawings: Melle Smets
Concept / design: Studio Renate Boere: Renate Boere, Evelien Broersen, Simone van Oosterhout, Wilco van der Leeuw, Aniek Kroes
Photography: Renate Boere, Aafke Holwerda, David van Riel, Jan Scheffe, Melle Smets, Jokko Voogt
Printing & binding: ORO grafisch projectmanagement, Printing House KOPA
Publisher: Hybrid Crocodile
ISBN 978-90-82672-54-1
Commissioned by the Aardschap foundation, Utrecht February 2018
www.aardschap.nl
This publication was made possible by DOEN Foundation and the Municipality of Utrecht.