The worlds of art and science are set to collide every five years thanks to J. Paul Getty Trust and its collaborating institutions in the landmark event, PST Art: Art & Science Collide, returning in September 2024.

Over 50 museums and institutions will exhibit at the event, all delving into the intersections of art and science, both past and present, as well as looking toward the future. The exhibitions on display will cover a broad spectrum, ranging from ancient cosmologies to Indigenous sci-fi, and from environmental justice to artificial intelligence.

“The exhibitions in this new edition of PST Art boldly go beyond the expected, sparking a fundamental shift in how we see the possibilities of both art and science,” says Joan Weinstein, director of the Getty Foundation, who has stewarded all PST Art collaborations to date. “The questions that more than 50 partner organizations are posing in their exhibitions are crucial for our very future. What can artists and scientists do in collaboration to overcome ecological damage and imagine a more sustainable future? What does the history of Southern California’s aerospace industry tell us about the movies, and about current structures of surveillance and control? How have scientists visualized the natural world, and how do artists now envision once-unthinkable scientific developments? With Art & Science Collide, PST Art is again venturing into new territory and revealing the unexpected.”

Collaborating institutions of PST: Art & Science Collide include LACMA, the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, The Broad, MOCA, academic institutions including the California Institute of Technology, and more.

Exhibitions will kick off with events hosted by the Natural History Museum and La Brea Tar Pits, with all exhibitions aiming to aid in understanding the past while considering the ecological future.

Following Getty’s initial grants announcement two years ago for Art & Science Collide, artists, curators, scientists, and other professionals have conducted research for their respective exhibitions. Some teams have commissioned new works from artists or have designed immersive displays. The collection showcases work from over 800 artists, with that number likely to grow in the future.