Leonardo Network News

The Newsletter of the International Society of the Arts, Sciences and Technology and of l'Observatoire Leonardo des Arts et Technosciences

In Memoriam: Sandy Koffler

On 11 November 2003, Sandy Koffler passed away in Paris at the age of 86. Koffler was the founder and Editor-in-Chief until 1977 of the UNESCO Courier magazine, published in 35 languages until 2001. Sandy Koffler met Leonardo founder Frank Malina in 1947 at the inception of UNESCO, when Malina was helping set up the UNESCO science program; Koffler then established Courier. This deep and uninterrupted friendship lasted over 30 years of hectic discussions, shared enthusiasms and mutual encouragements. Malina left UNESCO to devote himself to kinetic art and, later, to the establishment of the international art/science journal Leonardo.

Malina's sudden death in 1981 threw the immediate future of the journal into some doubt; it was then that Koffler offered his editorial experience to assure the continuation of Leonardo; he served as Editor-in-Chief during 1981-1982 until the Leonardo editorial offices were moved to San Francisco, where they are still headquartered.

Koffler and Malina were part of a generation that helped rebuild world institutions after World War II; Koffler dedicated his life to promoting international understanding and making known the world heritage and developments in education, science and culture.

Koffler is survived by his wife, Pauline Koffler, who also served for many years as a corresponding editor of Leonardo. The Leonardo network mourns the departure of a friend, colleague and kindred spirit who contributed through his work to the creation of a saner world based on international collaboration and dialogue.

In Memoriam: Stephen Benton

Stephen A. Benton, inventor of the rainbow hologram and a pioneer in medical imaging and fine-arts holography, died of brain cancer at Massachusetts General Hospital on 9 November 2003. He was 61. Benton was director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Center for Advanced Visual Studies (CAVS) and an Honorary Editor of Leonardo.

Benton delighted in both the scientific and aesthetic applications of holography. He held 14 patents in optical physics, photography and holography, and his holographic works have been displayed at the Museum of Holography in New York. He described holography as a true "intersection of art, science and technology." While he considered viewing a good hologram to be a "magical experience," the rigor and depth of his research yielded far more than visual wizardry. Holograms have been used to create three-dimensional composites of CT and MRI scans that have been very useful in medical diagnosis.

Contact: Sarah Wright, MIT News Office, 617-258-5400. E-mail: <shwright@mit.edu>.

New Simple URLs for Leonardo Web Sites

The Leonardo web site features easy-to-remember URLs. The Leonardo top-level site can always be found at <www.leonardo.info>. Visitors can now find Leonardo Music Journal at <lmj.mit.edu>, Leonardo Electronic Almanac at <lea.mit.edu>, the Leonardo Book Series at <lbs.mit.edu> and Leonardo Reviews at <leonardoreviews.mit.edu>.

OPEN SKY Project Wins New Horizons Prize

Leonardo/The International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology (ISAST) and Leonardo/L'Observatoire Leonardo des arts et des technosciences (OLATS), along with the Paris-based @rt Outsiders Festival, are pleased to announce that the Leonardo-@rt Outsiders 2003 New Horizons Prize has been awarded to Ewen Chardronnet and associated artists for the work OPEN SKY. The jury particularly noted the innovation of the Acoustic Space Lab network and the OPEN SKY project artists: Rasa Smite, Martins Ratniks, Raitis Smits, Radioqualia, and Makrolab, coordinated by Marko Peljhan.

OPEN SKY is an installation by Ewen Chardronnet based on the conversion of the Soviet-era radio-telescope RT32 of Irbene in Latvia in the context of the ongoing research projects of the Acoustic Space Lab collective. The RT32 is a 32-meter former espionage antenna that has been converted for use in radio-astronomy and fundamental science. Since 2001, artists, radio amateurs and scientists have explored the tactical and artistic possibilities of the dish. See <http://acoustic.space.re-lab.net/> or contact Ewen Chardronnet at <ewen@tiscali.fr>.

The jury also awarded a special mention...