The most challenging problem facing creativity-based technology research stems from the multitude of hypotheses, concepts, descriptions, interpretations and definitions of what "creativity" means and how it can be described or modeled. It is understood and accepted that "creativity" holds the key to innovation, which can be defined as a qualitative jump from one level to another. It becomes obvious that research into "creativity" can only exist if it is seen as fundamental research and applied research at the same time. This is exactly the point where science, art and technology can intersect with the greatest benefit to all. This reciprocal interchange between science and technology and human creativity and innovation needs to be understood beyond discipline boundaries. To bring research and understanding of "creativity" to fruition for innovative approaches in science and technology and to reciprocally engage fundamental research in potentially non-scientific environments requires a truly open and cross-disciplinary framework. Initiatives supported so far in this area - drawing on research, development and production and spanning natural sciences, computer science and informatics, engineering and humanities including fine, performing and applied arts, educational science, psychology and philosophy - are promising and have yielded new insights. As these research projects by design and necessity have to cross academic and research boundaries, they need sustained support to enable, focus, coordinate and disseminate their activities and results within their own field as well as to other research outside of their more immediate scope.
The goal of this workshop is to define in concrete terms a platform that sustains cross-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary research, collaboration and exchange in the integration of quantifiable and qualitatively defined paradigms at the intersection of creativity, technology, research and innovation. This area of research can be subsumed under the heading of "creativity-based technology research and technology-based creativity research". In contrast to established platforms and network infrastructures to support the field in international arenas, there are few supported platforms - such as symposia, conferences, publications or internet-based resources - that are dedicated to establish communication and continuity in creativity-based technology research in the United States. Activities in this workshop will build upon results from prior NSF workshops in support of creativity-based technology research, and also upon research projects funded during the three-year tenure of the NSF CISE IIS CreativeIT program from 2007 to 2010. Objectives for this workshop are to: 1) Identify key issues in infrastructure needs to support creativity-based technology research; 2) Develop concrete plans toward the development, management and constituent involvement in a distributed network infrastructure for the sustained support of the field; and 3)Identify leading institutions that will move forward on proposals to possible supporting agencies and foundations. Based on these outcomes, the following actions may be defined: 1) Initial definition of a network structure of key institutions that can develop a proposal to the NSF and/or other funding entities to support the network structure; 2) Collaborative research proposals as an extension of existing research projects, which are currently limited to one center or to one sub-field where other centers may have complementary research expertise and capacity; 3) Commitment, timeline and structure of future tasks required to consolidate the initiatives coming out of this workshop with the goal of developing a network of centers, researchers and creative practitioners.
This workshop was the third in the series initiated by the joint workshop of the National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. The first workshop, entitled RE/search: Art, Science, and Information Technology, was held in September 2010; it continued in January 2011 at the Rhode Island School of Design with a workshop on Bridging STEM to STEAM. The third workshop was held at EMPAC, the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. It focused on the intellectual, infrastructural, and managerial requirements to create a network of institutions, researchers, engineers, and artists aimed at realizing concrete projects at the intersections of arts, science, and technology. Transdisciplinary projects, at least those that actually leave the intellectual silos of current disciplines behind, are still rare and remain a challenge. Inter-institutional efforts to build and conduct joint projects require a constant exchange on the basis of individual projects to maximize potential collaborations. The area of Art + Science + Technology is as diverse as it is a non-standardized academic research area. The goal of this workshop was to attempt to define, in concrete terms, a platform that sustains cross-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary research, collaboration, and exchange in the integration of quantifiable and qualitatively defined paradigms at the intersection of creativity, technology, research, and innovation. In preparation for the workshop, a questionnaire was sent to the participants coming to Rensselaer. The full range of replies, which is included in the final NSF report, can be seen as a historic document of which topics at this point in time are at the forefront of the intersection of arts, science, and technology. The research community of arts, science, and technology has experienced a major boost through the CreativeIT program. The goal of the third, and last, workshop was to create a platform for this community to continue and intensify their work and critical dialogue. One of the most important merits of this workshop was to bring together a wide range of researchers, experts and members of funding agencies who otherwise hardly meet. The resulting intellectual exchange was fundamental to the creation of the necessary interdisciplinary foundation for areas that have a hard time working together because of the segmentation of research funding. It is rare at such conferences that experts from audio and image and the related artistic areas of music and visual arts are represented with equal weight and depth. Additionally, the field of architecture complemented the presence of "inhabited spaces" as a major contributor to the topic of the workshop. In science and engineering, areas from signal processing to psychophysiology, from education sciences to artificial intelligence were represented. A few characteristics of the group that participated in this workshop should be highlighted: Balance across research areas, for example, expertise in image and audio was present with equal weight Theory and practice in arts, science, and technology were both represented in the group of participants Artists, scientists, and engineers were represented, with a large number of attendees spanning at least two of these fields Representatives of both NSF and NEA attended The workshop consisted of a balance of keynotes, which also provided international perspectives, plenary sessions and workgroups. The workgroups were highly effective and covered the following areas: Group #1, the Clearinghouse group, proposed a multi-layer platform to publish and disseminate multimedia material. Group #2, the Network Opportunity group, planned an open network for opportunity, sustainability, and regeneration, which supports intellectual exchange between communities and academic circles and promotes good ideas through small startup grants. Group #3, the Open Network I group, proposed setting up national laboratories for interdisciplinary research in the intersecting fields of science, engineering, arts. The design of a three-stage plan started with 1) connecting existing facilities in the field; 2) designing a prototype national laboratory, which then can be used as a model for; 3) a network of such institutions. Group #4, the Open Network II group, also worked on a facility-support model, but their model focused on the integration of existing facilities, rather than on erecting new infrastructure. Group #5, the Curriculum group, examined models to support education aspects of a network of excellence in the fields of science, engineering, arts and design. The highly integrated, interdisciplinary exchange of this workshop was outstanding and unique in that it brought respected researchers and practitioners from commonly separated areas together. As a result of this workshop, two research projects based on Groups 1 and 2, Clearinghouse and Network Opportunity were initiated in the Summer of 2011 with funding from the National Science Foundation: "Collaborative Projects: EAGER: A virtual eXchange to support networks of creativity and innovation amongst Science, Engineering, Arts and Design (XSEAD, Award #1141631) and "Collaborative Research: EAGER: Network for Science, Engineering, Arts and Design (NSEAD, Award #1142510).
