Open Hourglass.pdf

for reading by Julia Shack-Sackler, Alice Stern, Ivan Cheng


The Annual Art and Science Insights into Consciousness Workshop is a three-day retreat that is held each summer at The Watermill Center. During this unique retreat, exceptionally merited artists and scientists are brought together in an inspirational setting to foster an interdisciplinary discussion about consciousness. The goal is to enable a reciprocal creative process that will advance both the arts and the sciences, as well as their intersection.

2017 is the second of three years focused on the topic of Contagion, with this year’s focus being on Change & Contagion. With this theme, we continue our explorations into consciousness, transitions, and human connectedness. We invite participants to interpret Contagion in broad terms. For example, laughter and yawns can be contagious, a fashion trend can spread through society like a virus, the emotional state of an artist can be transmitted to his/her audience via a performance, painting, photograph, etc.