Press release: 18 September 2014

Silent Signal granted a Wellcome Trust Large Arts

Award
Animate Projects is delighted to announce that the Wellcome Trust has
awarded a Large Arts Award for Silent Signal, an ambitious project
exploring genetics, immunology and epidemiology. Silent Signal has the
priilege of being one of only two projects to receie the coeted grant
this year.
Silent Signal brings together six artist and scientist partnerships to create
animated wor!s for exhibition online and in the gallery, with associated
eents and educational resources to share learning. Animate is wor!ing
with irologist "entley #rudgington as the chief scienti$c adisor to the
project and is wor!ing with a range of partner organisations, including
%&A' in 'erby, (iid Projects in "irmingham, )mperial #ollege London,
"radford Animation *estial, and #entral Saint +artin,s +A Art and Science
programme.
The six partnerships are-
boredomresearch and 'r Paddy "roc! .&niersity of /lasgow0
1llie Land and 'r Peter 2lier .&niersity of 2xford0
/enetic +oo and 'r 3eil 'ufton .)mperial #ollege London0
Samantha +oore and 'r Serge +ostowy .)mperial #ollege London0
1ric Schoc!mel and 'r +egan +acLeod .&niersity of /lasgow0
#harlie Tweed and 'r 'arren Logan .Wellcome Trust Sanger )nstitute0
Together the Silent Signal commissions explore how our immune system
functions, how disease is spread and how our genetic code can be
manipulated. These creatie responses to cutting edge research will
challenge us to re4ect on what the future applications and impact of the
research might be for us all- where medical adancements could boost our
response to infection, exploit our genetic code to treat health and
behaioural problems, or predict how medicinal interentions could sae
large populations from fatal diseases.
Silent Signal has been deeloped with support from the Wellcome Trust
that enabled us to connect the artists and scientists through wor!shop
sessions and to facilitate the deelopment of the commissions.
At silentsignal.org you can encounter a wealth of bac!ground material
generated during the 56' period, along with commissioned articles by
7eather "arnett and 'r 8athryn 7ar!up. As the project deelops the site
will continue to be updated with information about the projects, interiews
with the collaborators, articles and educational resources.
Silent Signal is produced by Animate Projects with support from the
Wellcome Trust.
Notes to editors
or more in!ormation about t"e pro#ect $isit "ttp:%%www&silentsignal&org
Animate Pro#ects
Animate Projects is an internationally renowned strategic agency based in 'erby
and London that champions creatie animation practice. We support artists,
practice and professional deelopment, engage the public with the craft of
animation and contribute to critical discourse around animation. (isit
http-99www.animateprojects.org
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieing
extraordinary improements in human and animal health. )t supports the
brightest minds in biomedical research and the medical humanities. The Trust,s
breadth of support includes public engagement, education and the application of
research to improe health. )t is independent of both political and commercial
interests. (isit http-99www.wellcome.ac.u!
About t"e artists and t"eir pro#ects
boredomresearc"
Wor!ing with 'r Paddy "roc! from the &niersity of /lasgow, boredomresearch
are producing a real:time animation using gaming engine software and real
mathematical modelling data to explore the relationship between infection
transmission and enironment in an illuminated ;' landscape.
boredomresearch is a collaboration between Southampton based artists (ic!y
)sley and Paul Smith. The collectie are internationally renowned for creating
software drien art, highly aesthetic both isually and acoustically, and hae been
awarded honorary mentions in Transmediale.<= and ()'A >.< Art 6 Arti$cial Life
)nternational #ompetition. )sley and Smith are 5esearch Lecturers at the 3ational
#entre for #omputer Animation, "ournemouth &niersity.
'llie Land
1llie Land explores the science of disrupted sleep, drawing on 'r Peter 2lier,s
research into common brain mechanisms. The wor! will be hand drawn,
incorporating real isual data and patient testimony to create a wor! that loo!s at
the importance of sleep to mental wellbeing.
*ilmma!er 1llie Land combines animation techni?ues and documentary practice to
ma!e $lms that encourage dialogue on subjects ranging from the ways in which
humans interact with their enironments to women,s health and social issues. 7er
recent Wellcome Trust supported $lm, #entrefold, won "est 3on@broadcast *actual
*ilm at The 5oyal Teleision Society awards in A<BA. She is Senior Lecturer in
Animation at 3orthumbria &niersity.
(enetic )oo
)n collaboration with 'r 3eil 'ufton, /enetic +oo are deeloping an immersie
$lm that ta!es the iewer on a fantastic oyage through the in4ammation
process. They will be using 8inect interactie technology to allow the audience to
experience how a pathogen is dealt with.
/enetic +oo is a collaboration between artists Tim Pic!up and 3icola Schauerman.
"oth artists gained +asters degrees from the Lansdown #entre for 1lectronic Arts.
Since A<<C, /enetic +oo has been deeloping a series of interactie ideo
installations based on imagined future eolutions. 2ne of their wor!s, Star$sh,
receied a Dohn Lansdown Award for )nteractie 'igital Art at 1urographics .A<<>0
and was nominated for an 1rotic Award .A<BA0.
Samant"a )oore
Samantha +oore will focus on how the cytos!eleton in our cells responds to
intracellular pathogens by assembling into septin cages within the transgenic
Eebra $sh model that Wellcome Trust 5esearch *ellow 'r Serge +ostowy
deeloped. The wor! will contain a ariety of animation techni?ues and scales of
perception from the micro to macroscopic, coupled with the obserations and
drawings of the lab team.
Samantha +oore is an award winning animated documentary ma!er and
researcher. She teaches animation at the &niersity of Wolerhampton and is
completing a Ph' by practice at Loughborough &niersity. She has published
seeral articles on her research and has gien lectures on her wor!, including to
the 5oyal )nstitute of Australia .A<BA0 and a !eynote tal! and screening at the
American Synesthesia Association conference in #anada .A<B;0.
'ric Sc"oc*mel
Wor!ing with 'r +egan +acLeod, 1ric Schoc!mel is creating an adertisement for
a $ctional futuristic computer game that demonstrates how a player could control
and upgrade a real life cell culture of T:cell populations bringing to light bioethical
?uestions about creating life forms. The wor! uses ;' computer animation and
references the culture and tools of popular multi:player games.
1ric Schoc!mel obtained a +asters degree with distinction from #entral Saint
+artins #ollege of Art and 'esign. 7e is #o:*ounder and #reatie Partner at
Watergun, a creatie studio for commercial audioisual projects. 7is personal
project, Syscapes, comprises narratie shorts and multi:screen installations that
hae been shown at exhibitions and $lm festials around the world.
+"arlie Tweed
#harlie Tweed is exploring the connection between the se?uenced genome code
of mice with the computer code used to analyse and translate the genetic data
produced by 'r 'arren Logan at the Wellcome Trust Sanger )nstitute. 7e will be
layering A' and ;' animation with both found and shot footage, with a oiceoer
of the coding machine considering the mechanics of life from its perspectie.
#harlie Tweed is an award:winning artist and curator based in London. 7e
graduated from /oldsmiths +*A Art Practice in A<<C. 7e receied an A75# Ph'
Studentship from 8ingston &niersity in A<BB where he is currently a Ph'
5esearcher. 7is practice utilises appropriated images and footage that is
manipulated, re:$lmed and re:animated.
+ontact
Abigail Addison 9 Associate 'irector 9 FGG>>CH ICIH<; 9
abigailJanimateprojects.org