CRYPTIC LINEAGES: COAXING THE SIGNAL
An online public conversation with Laura Splan and Open Fung
Hosted by Open Fung
LOCATION: Online
DATE: Wednesday, May 20, 2026
TIME: 1:00 – 2:15 PM PT / 4:00 – 5:15 PM ET
REGISTER TO ATTEND: ZOOM LINK
FREE
This event will be recorded, archived, and captioned
EVENT DETAILS: What does it look like when an artist and a group of scientists spend eightmonths thinking together - following curiosity wherever it leads?
Laura Splan is the inaugural resident of Open Fung's Artist-in-Researchprogram, a collaboration that brings artists into sustained dialogue with OpenFung scientists, not to illustrate their work, but to genuinely explorealongside it. Over eight months, Splan followed her curiosity deep into OpenFung's research world - from fungal inks to speculative ideas aboutfungal computing - sitting with questions that are still opening up.
This event is an invitation to hear where that process took her: what itrevealed, what it changed, and what it left her wanting to know more about.It's a conversation about the edges of knowledge, and what art and science canfind there together.
Join us for an artist talk followed by conversation and Q&A with Open Fungco-founders Courtney Fink, Rachel Linzer, Rolando Perez and Phil Ross.
Open Fung's Artist-in-Research program is made possible with generous support from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.
ABOUT OPEN FUNG
Open Fung isa nonprofit organization advancing fungal technologies through open science andthe arts. We centralize research, generate open-source data and methods, andbring together fungal innovation communities to foster collaboration. Our artsprogram creates the stories, spaces, and experiences that invite people intothe fungal future.
ABOUT OPEN FUNG’S ARTIST-IN-RESEARCH PROGRAM
The Artist in Research program allows Open Fung to deeply engage with artiststhrough extended research and exploration. Artists spend time with our team ofscientists with the goal of thinking, exploring and working together. Wepresent programs and events to the public to build connections. These publicactivities and exchanges are the first step towards a longer engagement,creating connections and forming a network of involvement.
ABOUT LAURA SPLAN
Laura Splan isa New York City-based artist working at the intersections of science,technology, and culture. Her research-based practice and interdisciplinarycollaborations — with physicists, biologists, virologists, mycologists,engineers, and others — culminate in multimedia exhibitions and events. Herwork cultivates what she calls the "tactical tactile": an intuitivesense of the interconnectedness of scientific phenomena and everyday life.