The open space meeting ‘Einstein and Picasso’ was held in Dortmund, Germany, in March 2009, organised by the British Council in Berlin.  Professor John Schranz of the University of Malta was the delegate from Malta who attended the event, among around 80 international artists and scientists exploring key external and internal drivers which lead and influence creativity.

“The thought underlying the whole event was just perfect for my interests and for what I have been doing for the last 17 years or so,” said Professor Schranz. Underlining the liberating feeling “of going to attend a conference without any pre-designed contribution packed away reassuringly in my bags”, he described the event as being “thrown into a crucible, with a brief of working around the themes of creativity and innovation, in the process seeking to generate a strong bridge between the sciences and the arts.”

For the British Council creativity is an essential ingredient to social well-being and intercultural understanding. A major strand of the British Council’s programmes worldwide is devoted to projects of scientific and artistic creativity. ‘Einstein and Picasso’ was the first event trying to define the concept of creativity in a contemporary context and to find a common understanding about what triggers creativity today.

The project aimed to

•develop a network of European artists and scientists interested in one another's creative approaches and in new cross-over ways of problem-solving,

•provide follow-up and access to existing sci-art networks (e.g. TippingPoint),

•recognise the UK's expertise in international cultural relations focusing on new ways of multi-lateral, cross-sectoral relationship-building,

•identify today's key drivers of creativity,

•increase the public's and cultural policy makers' awareness of the commonalities of seemingly disparate realms,

•familiarise influential next generation artists and scientist with the format of open space, self-organised debate.

For more information on this event visit www.britishcouncil.de/e/projects/einstein-picasso