Labor: Embodied Intelligence and Human–Machine Creativity

This panel discussion brings together artists and scientists to discuss Labor, a project at the intersection of women’s health, embodied intelligence, and human–machine creativity.

The project Labor engages with the dual meaning of the term: both industrial production and childbirth. In doing so, it highlights the often-overlooked importance of bodily knowledge in the arts, and particularly in women's medical and technological contexts. The installation explores the balance between human intuition and algorithmic automation, emphasizing the material constraints of painting and the role of human agency in the creation of large-scale generative works.

Labor is an artwork realized within the research group Embodied Agents in Contemporary Visual Art, which examines how embodied intelligence can be articulated through human–machine creativity. This talk introduces Labor as a case study in art–science collaboration. Prof. Inge Hermann (ETH Zurich) will outline her research on women’s health, with particular attention to menstrual diagnostics, endometriosis, and placenta research. Artist and artistic director Liat Grayver will situate the project conceptually, addressing the role of embodied intelligence in the creation of art and life, and reflecting on the collaborative processes that shaped the work. Researcher and artist Daniel Berio will then present the technical dimension, focusing on generative software and the use of a 7-axis robotic arm with custom paintbrushes to transform electron microscope imagery into a large-scale painted composition. The session concludes with Grayver contextualizing Labor within the broader exhibition Embodied Agents in Contemporary Visual Art.

By combining scientific research, computational methods, and robotic systems, Labor investigates how human and machine agencies intersect in artistic creation, and how this interplay can open critical perspectives on the contemporary state of women’s health and social structures. The project has been supported by funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation (AGORA), the German Research Foundation (DFG), and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

Sat, 11/08/2025 - 11:30 Sat, 11/08/2025 - 12:30

Important Information
As spaces are limited, please feel free to register in advance. Your reserved seat will be held until 10 minutes before the event begins. If you cannot attend, kindly cancel your ticket so another guest can join.
Please note: late arrivals may have their spot reallocated.

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