“Art and science take very different approaches to gaining insight into complex interrelationships. Science can address the topic of autonomy from an interdisciplinary perspective,” says Franziska Hornig, Secretary General of the Leopoldina. “In cell biology, researchers study autonomous cells capable of organising their own metabolism and division. In robotics, the goal is to enable machines to perform complex actions independently, without external control. In sociology, autonomy emerges as a field of tension between self-determination and external determination. We are very much looking forward to complementing these scientific perspectives at the Annual Assembly with an artistic exploration of the theme of autonomy. Through our cooperation with the Saxony-Anhalt Arts Foundation, our main building at Jägerberg will become a site-specific exhibition spanning the entire building.”
“Collaborating with such a renowned institution as the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina is an outstanding occasion for us. It not only offers the opportunity to reach new audiences, but also encourages us to rethink the relationship between art and science. At the Art Foundation, we are committed to creating new spaces and interfaces in order to foster interdisciplinary exchange and mutual inspiration. This cooperation allows us to provide artists with a platform for entering into a creative dialogue with scientists. We look forward to the works that will emerge and to seeing how the ‘external gaze’ on the respective other discipline stimulates exchange and reflection,” says Manon Bursian, Director of the Saxony-Anhalt Arts Foundation.
On the occasion of the Leopoldina Annual Assembly 2026, the Saxony-Anhalt Arts Foundation invited six individual artists and one artists’ collective to take part in a competition by invitation and engage with the theme of “Autonomy”. They were asked to develop artworks that would visually accompany the Academy’s headquarters during the Annual Assembly. Representatives of the Art Foundation and the Leopoldina selected two projects from the submissions: “Autonomy of the Chrysalis” by Julia Schleicher and “Collective Autonomy” by the artists’ collective Klub7.
Last year, during the Saxony-Anhalt annual exhibition “Gerechtigkeyt 1525”, sculptor Julia Schleicher attracted visitors to Allstedt with a gigantic sculptural thundercloud. She now turns her attention to the “Autonomy of the Chrysalis”. Within an insect cocoon, the processes of metamorphosis take place shielded from external influences; the pupa regulates all processes independently inside the cocoon. Julia Schleicher artistically engages with this autonomous biological process. She is creating more than 30 objects from various materials, including ceramics, plaster, concrete and wood wool, in the form of insect chrysalises and cocoons. Installed on walls and ceilings throughout the Leopoldina building, they are intended to create moments of irritation and reflection.
For 28 years, the artists’ collective Klub7 has brought urban landscapes and interiors to life with its vibrant murals and illustrations. In front of the Leopoldina’s main building, the group will erect the large-scale installation “Collective Autonomy” using a variety of building materials and dyed, painted and printed fabrics. Incorporating sound elements and – at night – light installations, the work will be both visible and audible in the surrounding urban space. The planned artwork focuses on the essence of autonomy, particularly the collective balancing of freedom and limitation. Freedom never exists in complete isolation, but always in relation to rules, expectations and boundaries. People act independently – yet only within certain frameworks: laws, resources, social norms or moral guidelines. The aim is to make visible the processes, dynamics and interplay of structure and chance – closely linked to the collective’s mode of working. This spontaneous, collaborative process creates a system in which autonomy becomes tangible.
The inauguration of the artworks is scheduled for Friday, 21 August 2026. The Leopoldina Annual Assembly will take place on Thursday, 24 and Friday, 25 September 2026. The scientific coordination is led by Prof. Dr Alexandra Freund, Prof. Dr Bernhard Hommel and Prof. Dr Wilhelm Hofmann from the Section Psychology and Cognitive Sciences.