Artists and the universe collide in East End exhibition

Twenty-five talented artists have taken on a unique challenge of creating pieces of art to showcase the ideas and theories behind particle physics. Their work, which ranges from comic strips to paintings and interactive installations, will be showcased at the Rag Factory from 1-7 October 2012.

Dr Ben Still from Queen Mary, University of London, who helped organise the Jiggling Atoms project said: “This is the first time we have introduced artists to take on the challenge of coming up with a visual representation of the concepts behind particle physics.”

After a series of lectures and tutorials learning about the basics of particle physics, the artists chose a medium which would bring the concepts to life.

Malte Oppermann from Imperial College London and visual artist Jennifer Crouch designed the lectures specifically for the project to help educate the artists about a few basic concepts and principles.

“Inspired by Nobel-laureate Richard Feynman and his wonderful ability to teach physics to non-scientists, teaching was the natural starting point of the project but getting from Newton to Feynman is quite a challenge in such a short time,” Oppermann said.

“Our main aim is to get everyone excited about some great ideas in physics which have radically changed our way of thinking about the world.”

The exhibit will host a mix of new talented graduates and established artists such as Sister Arrow, Zeel, Stephen Fowler, Peter Nencini, Katie Scott and Grace Helmer.

Co-organiser Natalie Kay-Thatcher, who conceived the project idea, said: “With such diverse creative input, the exhibition will provide a truly unique visual experience enabling visitors to be amazed by the forces that make atoms jiggle.

“Mixing knitting with black holes and paint with giant particle detectors, our artists explore scientific concepts rarely used in this context or with this intensity.”