a message to extraterrestrials

How to address extra-terrestrials? This is the strange question that graphic designer Juliette Nier and physicist Julien Bobroff asked around twenty student designers or artists from ENSAD. In just a few days, they had to build devices to tell extra-terrestrials about some of the elements of our Earth, fire, water, sound, light, time and even communication. Discover their answers, often quirky and original!

The projects videos

The workshop topic

On November 16, 1974, a 1679-bit radio message was sent from the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico to the globular cluster M13 in deep space. A cleverly coded message to tell extra-terrestrials how we matter, what we are made of, where our Earth is located.

For this workshop, graphic designer Juliette Nier and physicist Julien Bobroff invite Ensad students to imagine a new message for extra-terrestrials. This is an opportunity to think about questions of universal message, language, format, and issues of popularizing science through art and design.

The workshop begins with a visit to the Institute of Space Astrophysics and the presentation of their activities by Hervé Dole, astrophysicist. Then the students get to work. Their project must not exceed 2000 cm3 and must be the subject of a final video.

Behind the scenes

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Un cadavre exquis comme premier échauffement...

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This workshop was offered to 1st, 2nd and 3rd year ENSAD students by designer Juliette Nier and physicist Julien Bobroff (“La Physique Autrement”, Univ. Paris-Saclay and CNRS).

 

The students: Naomie Attar, Hugo Attia, Ninon Barthe, Elisa Cantenot, Lily Celeste, Yasemin Erten, Meline Frank, Matis German, Donnie Gregoire, Noah Jachez, Lova Ladouceur, Salome Lebette-Debas, Preeti Norpan, Lilou Ouvriez, Juliette Pelletier, Tristan Roulier, Eloi Rudelle, Anton Rybaltchenko, Judith Subra

 

 

Thanks to Hervé Dole, the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (Univ. Paris-Saclay) and the CEP (Institut Villebon-Charpak) for their welcome at the start of the workshop.

Authors: