Thanks to the UWindsor student group Science Meets Art (SMArt), visitors to Science Rendezvous Windsor can experience the creative side of STEM. Each year, SMArt brings a fun and engaging activity for the public to try, and displays the most recent work of their members, called “SMArtists”. These works include drawings, paintings, digital art, and photography, all with a STEM focus.
Due to the great success of SMArt, the University of Windsor launched SMArt Communications Masterclasses, an initiative that deploys creative methodologies, such as creative ecologies, creative writing, drama, film, music, and visual arts to teach undergraduate science, engineering, and humanities students communication and knowledge translation skills for disseminating STEM research to diverse populations.
SMArt Communications Masterclasses are a series of hands-on workshops designed and deployed by faculty members and graduate students in the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Social Science. Since 2021, these workshops have taught participants how to use artistic and creative skills to enhance their communication of STEM topics.
At a recent Science Rendezvous Windsor event, the SMArt Communications booth featured a community art project to create an ecosystem. Visitors were invited to colour a species and add it to the ecosystem display, while learning about the project.
Those in the Windsor-Essex region can connect with the SMArtists each year at Science Rendezvous Windsor. You can also learn more about the SMArt Communications project by visiting the website: https://www.uwindsor.ca/science/505/smart-communications-masterclasses.
SMArt Communications Student Coordinator Grace Dycha helps a young visitor add their species to the ecosystem board at Science Rendezvous Windsor.
