They face tough challenges together. And push themselves to the edge to preserve the troupe. And what about you? How do you deal with an unpredictable nature? Do you interact? Do you react? Do you stand out?
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Entrepreneur and visual artist with a background in technology, life sciences and art.
More about BartField guide and lecturer on expedition ships.
More about FabriceScientific Advisor
More about Alexander
Bart is an entrepreneur and visual artist with a background in technology, life sciences and art. He started his career in the medical field in the 90’s when he joined a public, US-based, medical device company. In the process of promoting cutting-edge medical technology, Bart traveled around the globe and developed an affinity with the world’s diversity in general and various cultures and art in specific.
In 2005, he founded genae, a contract research provider for the life science industry. Through organic growth in the US and Europe, and acquisitions in Japan and the Middle East, genae developed into a reference, data-driven service provider for the medical industries. In 2019, Bart closed the acquisition of genae by an American multinational.
He started to paint at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp in 2016 and has further developed as a visual artist since then.
In INORGANIC LIFE®, his first solo installation art project, Bart explores the social, political, and economic topics of our time.
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Fabrice is a French biologist with a special interest on wildlife of the Polar Regions. Expert in ornithology, he firmly believes that birds are an inexhaustible source of wonder as well as a great excuse to travel around the World. His experience in the Polar Regions dates to 1989, when he spent 18 months working as a field researcher on seabirds and marine mammals of the remote Sub-Antarctic Kerguelen Islands.
In the early 90s, he began working as a field guide and lecturer on expedition ships, leading trips for bird lovers to the Antarctic Peninsula, the Weddell and the Ross seas in Antarctica, as well as the famous North-East and North-West passages in the high Arctic.
Fabrice is the author of several books about birds of the polar regions, including the ‘Pocket Guide to the Birds of the Antarctic Peninsula’ and ‘Antarctic Penguins: A visual Journey’. More recently, he published two illustrated books on Seabird Biology and Ecology. His last book deals with the Ecology of Sea Ice and the consequences of sea ice decline in the context of climate change.
When he is not travelling in the Polar Regions, Fabrice enjoy riding his horses in the countryside of central France and conducts field research on birds with the Museum of Natural History (Paris).
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Alexander studies how legged animals move and aim to understand the biomechanics, morphology, and neurocontrol involved. His team and himself develop legged robots and computer models to test our theories. By using these robots, they generate rich data, comparing it with data from actual running animals.
Alexander’s interests range from creating robots that imitate animal movement to designing sensors and actuators inspired by biology, learning how creatures move, and comprehending the biomechanics of both animals and robots.
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INORGANIC LIFE® is an installation art project that consists of an autonomous colony of life-size robot emperor penguins that imitates the behavior of real animals in a typical ‘huddle’. Such a colony is deployed in a museum environment. Several colonies, each with their own specific characteristics, will exist. Not only does the project showcase the beauty and potential of advanced technology, but it also serves as a metaphor for our relationship with nature and the changing world around us. The ingenious details of the robots' design and their complex movements refer to the intricate systems and processes that make up our planet, and to the delicate balance we must maintain to ensure its survival.
The creation of a colony of robot emperor penguins may spark meaningful conversations about our responsibilities as makers and innovators, and the ethical implications of our technological advancements. It stimulates the formulation of questions about our relationship with nature and the possible impact of our actions on the world around us.
Because the robots are modeled after emperor penguins, a species known for their resilience, adaptability and social organization, they form a source of inspiration and reflection for us as humans. We can look at this installation art as a symbol of hope and possibility, as a reference to our own ability to grow, change and work together in demanding times.
The colony becomes a powerful work of art that serves as a discussion platform for climate change. It challenges us to reflect on our relationship with the world around us, our role as creators and innovators, and our potential for growth and cooperation as a species.
Who's behind Inorganic Life®
Inorganic Life® is a novel, biomimicry installation art project that consists of a colony of robot emperor penguins. It is a thought-provoking exploration of our relationship with the environment, technology, and each other.
Impact of climate change: Emperor penguins are very sensitive to climate change and their colonies are threatened by melting sea ice. This installation art serves as a reminder of the environmental challenges we face and the potential impacts on vulnerable species.
Technological advances: The use of robots refers to the boundary between reality and virtuality that often depends on the level of immersion and sensory engagement. As technology advances, virtual experiences can become increasingly immersive, blurring the lines between what is real and what is simulated. It raises questions about the ethics and implications of artificial intelligence in a world increasingly dependent on machines.
Social connection and insulation: Huddling is a social behavior that penguins use for warmth and protection. The installation evokes a sense of community and insulation, reflecting the complex web of human connections in today's world. It invites us to reflect on the importance of social bonds, while also recognizing the reality of individual experiences.
In Inorganic Life®, Bart Segers explores the social, political and economic topics of our time.