Ars Biologica Independent Studies (ABIS): Biointelligence: Zoom In / Zoom Out

On the Complexity of Life Between the Cell, the Body, the Landscape, and the Universe

A three-day workshop with Tereza Čajková and Barbora Kleinhamplová

How does our perception of the world change when we move closer to the invisible structures of life? What happens when we zoom out and begin to think at the scale of organisms, ecosystems, the planet, or the cosmos?

This three-day Ars Biologica workshop invites participants to navigate between micro- and macro-perspectives — between the structure of the cell, the functioning of living organisms, embodied human experience, and broader social and cultural relations. Through encounters across diverse fields of knowledge, we will collectively explore the layered networks of relationships, patterns, and principles that shape life and inform the ways we understand the world.

We are interested in the language of living systems: codes, rhythms, networks, memory, cooperation, and adaptation. What can contemporary scientific knowledge reveal about the mechanisms of life, and how might such knowledge transform the ways we think about ourselves? How do we relate to the complexity within and around us? What are the capacities and limitations of our own systems? And what does it mean to cultivate potential beyond the constant imperative of performance and productivity?

The workshop creates a space for reflection, exchange, experimentation, doubt, and curiosity. Rather than seeking definitive answers, we are interested in collective inquiry, shifting perspectives, and developing new forms of sensitivity toward both living and non-living worlds.

The workshop is open to students, artists, researchers, and anyone interested in the intersections of art, science, and critical reflection on contemporary forms of life and knowledge.

Participation is free of charge.

Ars Biologica Independent Studies (ABIS)

Ars Biologica Independent Studies (ABIS) is an international educational program connecting students from across the arts and sciences to support practice-based inquiry into contemporary social, environmental, and technological conditions. ABIS is one of the pillars of the Ars Biologica project developed within the Budweis European Capital of Culture 2028. 

This year, you can join thematic ABIS modules: #1 Multispecies Research, #2 Experimental AI, #3 Biointelligence: Codes of Life, and #4 Sound Ecologies.

The program is part of the Ars Biologica program.