laboratoire écologie et art pour une société en transition
research
least places research at the heart of its activities. It is embedded in the development of our projects, the analysis of working conditions in the arts and our partnerships with academic institutions. The aim is to produce and share knowledge, to question established practices and to foster the dissemination of embodied, situated understandings within society.
Transdisciplinarity
least brings together artists, scientists, thinkers and local craftspeople and professionals to share knowledge and know-how. Experimenting, learning and acting collectively by drawing on everyone’s resources is the starting point for social transition. By championing alternative modes of research, least supports the creation of shared, decompartmentalised knowledge – far removed from competitive logic.
Believing in the power of artists to think outside the box and to bring poetry into everyday life, least conceives its projects as genuine research-creation processes – spaces for reflection, storytelling and shared experience.
To support this approach, least’s team includes a position dedicated specifically to research, ensuring theoretical support for artists and helping to weave together practice and thought. The knowledge generated through our projects is also shared with a broader audience via our newsletter (with articles shared on our media page).
Transmission
Drawing from least’s hands-on experience, we have developed a wide range of tools and skills that we are committed to passing on to artists and cultural workers. That is why we create spaces for training and discussion, in collaboration with other local organisations, to collectively imagine viable alternatives for cultural professions.
least promotes social transformation through art – but to do so, we must first create frameworks that make this transformation possible. How can we provide real support for co-creative artistic practices? How can we expand the artist’s toolbox? How can we encourage sustainable production methods and ensure enough time for experimentation? And how can we guarantee access to culture for everyone?
Workshops, talks, walks, shared meals or new formats yet to be invented – these moments of transmission are designed as collective and immersive learning experiences, led by artists, researchers, thinkers and expert practitioners.
Transformation
One of least’s core goals is to infiltrate art into various scientific and academic disciplines, in order to spark new ideas and future possibilities. To this end, we collaborate with several universities and higher education institutions (UNIL, HEPIA, HEAD, UNIGE, EPFL, La Manufacture), both through our own projects and as part of transdisciplinary research led by others. These collaborations allow us to challenge the often disembodied and normative frameworks of academic research and teaching by injecting more sensitive, situated approaches. In this spirit, least is currently involved in the HES-SO transdisciplinary research project Faire commun.