6 October
- Conference Centre, level 0 (Auditorium)
- 7.00 p.m. – 8.30 p.m.: Presentations
- 9.30 p.m. – 11.00 p.m.: First screening at the Przemiany Cinema (I Am Human directed by Elena Gaby, Taryn Southern)
- Conference Centre, level 1
- 8.30 p.m. – 11.00 p.m.: Exhibition opening
- 9.00 p.m. – 11.00 p.m.: DJ set (Maciek Polak)
The 13th edition of the Przemiany Festival will open with a meeting with three unique guests who will base their interpretation of this year’s slogan “superorganism” on their scientific research or artistic work.
Ruth Dudek-Wicher, PhD – assistant professor at the Department and Chair of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Parasitology at the Wrocław Medical University, will talk about research on the microbiome and its importance for our health.
Professor Bogusław Pawłowski – head of the Department of Human Biology at the University of Wrocław, will draw us nearer to selected aspects of the evolution of the human body and the related compromises, thus giving evidence of the hitherto adaptive success of our species.
Olivia Arthur – British photographer and member of the Magnum Photos association will present her photographic project in which she documents the contemporary technological evolution of humans – from bionics and intelligent prostheses to synthetic muscles and shockingly realistic robots.
Each presentation will take approximately 15 minutes. There will also be some Q&A time.
In the second part of the evening, we invite you to the opening of the Superorganism exhibition and to the festival cafe, where poet and musician Maciek Polak will present his original DJ set. You will also be able to participate in the first screening at the Przemiany Cinema.
Ruth Dudek-Wicher, PhD Pharm – pharmacist, assistant professor at the Department and Chair of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and Parasitology at the Wrocław Medical University. Her main scientific interests include biofilm, oral cavity diseases, microbiome, essential oils and rational antibiotic therapy. She is currently in the course of completing a specialisation in clinical pharmacy. Winner of the 2018 FameLab competition, the 30 Creative People of Wrocław and 2020 Personality of the Year awards. She is the author of 20 scientific publications. She also has experience in the field of Good Distribution Practice and Pharmacovigilance.
Professor Bogusław Pawłowski, PhD – head of the Department of Human Biology at the University of Wrocław. He studies human evolution, focusing on the biological grounds of human behaviours and preferences, particularly the signalling relevance of physical features perceived as attractive. In 2006–2010, he was head of the Department of Anthropology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Wrocław, and in 2019–2023, he was president of the European Human Behavior & Evolution Association. He was co-founder and chairman (since 2013) of the Polish Society for Human and Evolution Studies. In the 2021–2024 term, he was deputy chancellor of the Council of the University of Wrocław. He holds a NATO scholarship and was a Royal Society Fellow at the University of Liverpool (1997/98).
He authored over 100 original scientific publications in prestigious journals (e.g. Nature, Scientific Reports, Current Anthropology, Evolution and Human Behavior, Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.). A monograph was published under his editorship entitled "The Biology of Human Attractiveness" [Biologia atrakcyjności człowieka]. He co-authored (with T. Ulanowski) the popular science book "The Naked Mind. Why we are the way we are. Human nature without illusions" [Nagi umysł. Dlaczego jesteśmy jacy jesteśmy. Ludzka natura bez złudzeń.]. In 2016, he was awarded the title of Science Populariser in the competition of PAP Science and Scholarship in Poland and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education.
Olivia Arthur – London-based photographer known for in-depth research on personal and cultural identity. In her first book, "Jeddah Diary", she describes the lives of young women in Saudi Arabia. Her second book, "Stranger", describes a journey to Dubai from the perspective of a shipwreck survivor. Recently, Arthur has also begun to explore people’s relationship with their bodies, their physicality and their relationship with technology. She is the co-founder of the Fishbar photography space in London. In 2013, she became the Magnum Photos agency member, and in 2020–2021 she was its president. Her pieces were exhibited worldwide and are gathered in institutional collections in Great Britain, USA, Germany and Switzerland.
