Cady Coleman
& Josh Simpson
ArtScienceConverged, the 24th Experiment of Le Laboratoire, spends it second week highlighting the frontier of space exploration, and pioneering astronaut Cady Coleman's dream of a future where people, of every gender and race, will live far outside our planet's atmosphere and thrive to the benefit of us all. Cafe ArtScience pastry chef Gisele Miller will explore space experience with a special space dessert, available all week at the Cafe to whoever wishes to try it, a kind of pastry translation of the exhibited art work of Josh Simpson, husband and creative partner to Cady Coleman. Coleman and Simpson will discuss their experiences in space and artistic expression in a public conversation on July 6.
Artist and Astronaut:
Gravity, Centripetal force and Zero G:
Our orbiting lives in Art, Science and Space
Astronaut Cady Coleman and her husband Glass Artist Josh Simpson may appear to have wildly different lives, though actually their worlds of Science and Art intersect and combine in more ways then one could imagine.
Cady Coleman & Josh Simpson Talk
Thursday, July 6, 2017
Cost > Free with RSVP
Space > Limited
ArtScienceConverged is the 24th experiment of Le Laboratoire, and a public introduction to the inaugural World Frontiers Forum, a global initiative aimed at sparking creative action around a sustainable and inclusive human future. The cultural exhibition blends the Lab's futurist experimentation with the culinary program of Café ArtScience. Artists, scientists, engineers, designers and other creators bring to the public performances, exhibitions, and conversations at 15 frontiers of tomorrow, ranging from biology to architecture, transportation and contemporary art. In the future of a sustainable human experience all frontiers merge.
Josh Simpson first experimented with glass when he was a student at Hamilton College in 1970. Over the last 45 years, his art has evolved and grown as he has experimented and learned by making stupid mistakes. He found artistic inspiration in many aspects of his natural surroundings, but none more profound than the images from space sent back to earth by the early astronauts. Perhaps his greatest satisfaction and notoriety has been derived from his glass planets: beautiful unique spheres encasing whimsical or enigmatic scenes of other worlds. One of the Apollo astronauts glanced out of his spacecraft window and said "I can cover the Earth with my thumb." Josh captures that concept by creating planets that can be held in one’s hand.
He has devoted himself to mastering all aspects of glass, from building his own furnace and tools, to learning the chemistry of adding metallic oxides to create a spectrum of colors, to mastering the ancient techniques of blowing and forming. His work is in the permanent collections of many fine museums including the Boston Museum of Fine Art, the White House Collection of American Crafts and the Corning Museum of Glass. He has had one-man shows all over the world, has taught at schools, museums, and workshops, and has received many awards.
Having flown twice on the Space Shuttle and lived for almost six months aboard the International Space Station, Dr. Cady Coleman has been privileged to see the world from a different perspective than most. She envisions a future where humans consider both our Earth and our wider universe as the places they call home. In pursuit of that goal, she advocates strong teamwork between technologists, artists, storytellers and scientists to address today’s problems as well as to envision and plan for our future beyond Earth.
Cady received her B.S. in chemistry from MIT and her doctorate from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in polymer chemistry. In addition to her space flights, over the course of her 24-year career, she served as the Chief of Robotics, Lead Science Officer for Expeditions 26/27 and Lead Astronaut for commercial partner supply ships for NASA Astronaut Office. Before retiring from NASA and the US Air Force, Cady led open-innovation and public-private partnership efforts at NASA’s Office of the Chief Technologist in Washington, DC.
Currently a public speaker and consultant, Cady is passionate about sharing her experiences in leadership and inclusive collaboration, and about advancing the human footprint in this exciting new era of space exploration. She resides with her husband, glass artist Josh Simpson and son Jamey in Shelburne, Massachusetts.