The exhibition at L’Imprimerie for CurieuCity #2 takes you on a journey to the heart of biodiversity and the natural sciences, under the theme ‘From microscopic life to space travel’. Through a series of works and activities combining art and science, this exhibition invites the public to discover how life, in all its diversity, manages to adapt and survive in sometimes extreme environments.
But what exactly do resilience and diversity mean in the living world? Resilience is the ability of an organism or ecosystem to withstand a shock, adapt and return to a stable state after a disturbance. Biodiversity represents the variety of life forms, from the smallest microscopic creatures to the most complex ecosystems. The diversity of species, ecosystems and even genes is essential to ensure the survival of life on Earth. And what about in space?
The ability of life to transform itself in the face of threats and to evolve over time is a central driver of this exhibition. It explores how tiny organisms such as rotifers have developed exceptional survival strategies. These micro-organisms, almost invisible to the naked eye, reveal fascinating evolutionary mechanisms, resisting environments that we might think incompatible with life, such as the vacuum of space or freezing temperatures.
Rotifers, micro-organisms that are virtuosos at survival
Rotifers, which are the focus of the installation Rotifer (a)live and the work Ēngines of Ēternity, are perfect examples of biological resilience. These micro-organisms have the ability to survive extreme conditions, such as lethal radiation or prolonged periods of freezing. During their journeys on board the International Space Station, in the Rob1 and Rob2 missions, these creatures showed that they could withstand the rigours of space. These exploits, which you can discover interactively in Rotifer (a)live, raise crucial questions for scientific research: how can such abilities inspire us to ensure the survival of humankind in extraterrestrial environments?
The work Ēngines of Ēternity (SEADS) takes this line of thought a step further by examining the idea of cultural and genetic immortality through the prism of rotifers. These organisms have the unique ability to repair their DNA after damage, while integrating genes from other organisms, enabling them to diversify their genetic heritage. This work explores how genetic diversity, essential to the resilience of species, could also be crucial to the future of human life in space.
Evolution and diversity, the mechanisms of life
Evolution is another key process that enables biodiversity to develop and adapt. The Evolution Game card game, designed by Karine Van Doninck and illustrated by Ophélie Lhuire, invites you to explore in a fun way how life has evolved over millions of years. Through this interactive game, you’ll discover the major stages in evolution, from the appearance of eyes in molluscs to the increasing complexity of vertebrate brains. This is a unique opportunity to understand how, through natural selection, organisms acquire characteristics that increase their chances of survival in a variety of environments.
Ophélie Lhuire’s original drawings, also on display at L’Imprimerie, will take you on a fascinating journey through the internal and external structures of these species, illustrating the complexity of the evolution of life. These works offer an artistic perspective on fundamental scientific concepts, making evolution accessible and captivating for everyone.
Science in action, observing and understanding
The dialogue between art and science is also evident in Caroline Vincart‘s Cycles & Variations. This photographic work reveals the meticulous gestures of scientists as they study rotifers. By observing the interactions between researchers and these micro-organisms, Cycles & Variations highlights the repetitive and precise cycles that characterise scientific processes and naturalistic observations. By showing the link between these repetitions and the natural cycles of life, this work illustrates how small variations can, in the long term, have major impacts on the evolution and survival of species.
You will also have the opportunity to observe these living rotifers directly through a microscope, thanks to the Rotifer (a)live installation. This same attentive gaze is reflected in Ophélie Lhuire’s original drawings, which capture the internal structures of organisms with precision, linking scientific observation with artistic representation and revealing the complex beauty of life.
From the microscopic world to the immensity of the cosmos, a continuous journey
The exhibition at L’Imprimerie takes you on a journey from the infinitely small to the infinitely large, while offering keys to a better understanding of the resilience and diversity of life. Rotifers, with their ability to survive in the most hostile conditions, become a powerful metaphor for exploring how life itself can resist and adapt in the face of extreme challenges. These micro-organisms raise profound questions about our own future, particularly in terms of the conquest of space and survival in hostile environments.
The works on display also show that biological diversity – whether genetic diversity, species diversity or ecosystem diversity – is essential to guaranteeing the survival of life on Earth. Through the prism of art, you will discover that the mechanisms of life are complex, fascinating and often unexpected.
In short, this exhibition is an invitation to explore how life adapts, evolves and persists, whether on the microscopic scale of rotifers or in the vastness of the cosmos. It encourages everyone to think about their place in this incredible diversity, and to discover the scientific and creative processes that help us to better understand the mechanisms of evolution.