This project originates from the observations of researchers from the academic world: technologies based on quantum mechanics are increasingly becoming a concrete part of our lives, thanks to extraordinary physical phenomena. The creation of intelligent objects and dematerialized interfaces is accelerating the digital relationship between humans and machines. As a result, most of us interact with these technologies, which are based on abstract and sometimes unfamiliar concepts.
A lack of concrete analogies with these microscopic quantum phenomena drives Collectif Intrigo to work on the popularization of these scientific concepts using tangible, human-scale materials and mediums, such as concrete. Supported by immersive, interactive, and participatory technologies, digital art provides the necessary mediation for this project. It allows each of us—young and old—to begin to grasp the quantum world that surrounds us.
Such is the goal of Collectif Intrigo’s exhibition “From Quantum Science to Artistic Experience”, presented at the Amos Exhibition Center in June 2025.
The exhibition
The exhibition is presented as a semi-guided visit, consisting of two rooms: the first offers an introduction to the team, the progress of the project, the stages of creation, and the tools used to popularize the project’s key concepts. The second room showcases a collection of artistic iterations created by the Collective and inspired by quantum science.
Exhibition layout. Photo: Marie-Ève Brisson and Léa-Françoise Terrier .
Room A is a space structured around the six co-creation stages found in Design Thinking methods (Svalina et al., 2022, p. 449). Namely: immersion; positioning – creative framework; ideation; design; prototyping; and testing – exhibition. The room brings together the elements, archives, and unfinished concepts that enabled the Collectif to navigate these co-creation stages, while preparing the exhibition.
It also features video installations that explain three major principles of quantum mechanics addressed in the exhibition: superposition, interference, and entanglement. These devices were created jointly by professor Olivier Landon-Cardinal and artist Marianne Prud’homme. Additionally, Room A includes a playful installation developed by professor Bora Ung and Thierry Goyer. It helps visitors understand the Hong-Ou-Mandel (HOM) effect, a demonstration of the strange behavior of quantum particles through the phenomenon of interference (Hong, Ou, Mandel, 1987, p. 2044).
After defining the project, its objectives, and presenting the prototypes in Room A, Room B responds to the question posed to each artist and researcher: How can we bring the imperceptible quantum mechanics closer to our senses?
How to Perceive Quantum Mechanics
While Room A presents the project and its stages, Room B is designed as a hub where each artwork and scientific process operates simultaneously. Using quantum noise captured from a quantum random number generator (QRNG), binary noise is extracted, processed, and converted into a data stream. This noise is simplified (or unfolded) into six points. These points are then used by our system according to several attributes: six colors (RGB) and six positions in space and time (x, y, z, t).
Screenshots, QRNG. Photo : Jean-Ambroise Vesac.
Artistic Metaphor
The creative framework guiding the Collective brings together the key concepts that form the project’s ontology—that is, the fundamental notions that inspired and shaped the artistic choices throughout the process. Quantum noise serves as the central metaphor for indeterminacy and the infinite realm of possibilities.
All of this information materializes in various forms within the hub. In artist and professor Jean-Ambroise Vesac’s work, “Unfolding Quantum Noise”, features two projection screens and an interactive device available to the public. It consists of six fiber-optic-integrated triangles developed by professor Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon and Karina Arcolezi. Each triangle represents a qubit, the fundamental unit of quantum mechanics, with the entire set existing in a state of superposition. Beneath each triangle is a LED light, with its color representing a different state. Public interaction allows for the observation of transitional states—observable in the quantum world but not in the classical, real-world context.
The concept of superposition inspired the duality of light/matter, embodied in the exhibition by fiber optics passing through concrete. The notion of observation takes shape through the interactive gesture offered to visitors: by moving their hands, they manipulate, observe, and experiment with the visual and musical installation. This approach blends two opposing entities—an ancient construction material and contemporary technologies derived from photonics.
Jean-Ambroise Vesac, Déplier le bruit quantique. Photo : Jean-Ambroise Vesac.
Depending on certain data configurations and interactions, this action “fixes” the installation—much like a quantum system losing its indeterminacy under the effect of observation. The action then determines what we call a model. The visitor’s interaction influences both projection screens: one displays the position of the points in space and time, while the other offers a preview of the model composed of points and colors.
Models of Immutability
When the visitor’s interaction with the device is deemed interesting, the combination of colors and points they determine is recorded. The visitor experiences the impact of observation on a quantum system: fixation.
Kaiwan Zhang, Station NFT. Photo : Jean-Ambroise Vesac.
The model is recorded in the form of Non-Fungible Token (NFT), secured on a digital ledger powered by blockchain technology. Researcher and professor Kaiwan Zhang, the creator of this system, describes it as primarily symbolic: “We immortalize a physical and tangible phenomenon through an imperceptible digital technology.”
The NFTs symbolize the immutability that arises from the creation of a unique model. The models featured in the exhibition serve as reminders of this immutability—once created, they cannot be recreated. Through the artwork Impression CODE, these models surround us. Additionally, each NFT created adds to the collection, which is displayed on the video screen at the center of Room B. In this way, the exhibition is enriched by the accumulation of visitors’ experiences: through their interaction, they become active participants in the artwork.
Perceptible data
A frieze of models generated during the Collective’s experiments is displayed around the visitor. Art and code converge into a sensitive yet logical language that filters quantum noise to extract colors, shapes, and lines. While art renders the data perceptible, the color sequences enhance the visibility of the digital process. At the same time, the printed images preserve the information and complement the NFTs.
The exhibition blurs the boundaries between the real and the virtual, exploring possible representations of complex and intangible concepts. In this approach, professor Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon and Malo Charrier from the Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Multifunctional Construction Materials chose to make their model immutable by programming a 6-axis robot to “print” in concrete made with silica fume.
The opposition between material and digital fades away. The concrete printing of a dataset materializes its digital representation: the data takes physical form at the intersection of matter and digital technology.
Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon and Malo Charrier, Impression de Intrigo_mesh_12_16_2024_15h0m11s.obj. Photo : Jean-Ambroise Vesac.
Molecular Structures
To enable an immersive artistic representation of these concepts, artist Étienne Baillargeon drew inspiration from the hexagonal molecular structure of Portlandite, one of the main crystals formed during the hydration of Portland cement—an essential element for maintaining the strength of the concrete featured in the project by professor Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon.
The sculpture embodies the continuity between materials science and artistic creation, visually expressing the precision and geometric order found in the very matter of concrete. It materializes the connection between art and science.
Étienne Baillargeon, Sans titre (at the center of the image). Photo : Léa-Françoise Terrier.
Tangible Digital Memories
Beyond the creation and recording of a unique model, the visitor’s action also triggers the illumination of the entire room in the colors generated by the model. Finally, it allows its digital retrieval.
Defined by criteria of rarity, the models are made available to visitors through the creation of a digital collection. Each model is unique, and members of the Collective rely on their translations, generations, and results to share more knowledge and information about quantum mechanics and the issues surrounding it.
That’s why all models generated by visitors are available for retrieval, free of charge and with assistance from gallery staff. For the Collective, they represent an opportunity to offer a tangible digital memory of an intangible yet very real concept.
Overview of the exhibition, Room B. Photo: Jean-Ambroise Vesac.
In 2021, a collective of professors, researchers, and artists from various disciplines came together to share their respective expertise within an art/science co-creation project. Supported by the PRISME grant from the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et Technologies, Collectif Intrigo set out with the mission to “explore new transdisciplinary expressions of scientific and artistic innovation, beyond traditional boundaries.”
The collective brings together four foundational disciplines of the project: construction engineering, represented by Claudiane Ouellet-Plamondon; electrical engineering, represented by Bora Ung and Olivier Landon-Cardinal; software engineering, represented by Kaiwen Zhang; and digital art, represented by Jean-Ambroise Vesac and Étienne Baillargeon.
Since its beginnings, many individuals have contributed to the development and success of the project, including digital artist Marianne Prud’homme, exhibition coordinator Léa-Françoise Terrier, and student interns such as Naomie Allard, Aimene Akkouche, Laurine CapdeVille, Simon Colombel, Théo Des Lions, Mathilde Delacambre, and Helwan Mande—demonstrating strong interdisciplinary engagement. The project also benefited from the contributions of emerging researchers, including Malo Charrier, Thierry Goyer, Karina Huang-Arcolezi, and Eliot Terrier.
À propos de l’auteure
As part of her undergraduate studies in digital creation, Léa-Françoise Terrier joined the Collective in 2022. She began as a research assistant for professor Jean-Ambroise Vesac. After completing her bachelor’s degree, she pursued a master’s in museology at UQAM and continued her work with Collectif Intrigo, eventually taking on the role of exhibition coordinator. Together with the collective, she co-designed the exhibition From Quantum Science to Artistic Experience.
Acknowledgments
Collectif Intrigo would like to thank Benjamin Bouillon, Pablo Bianucci, Charles Brecard, Marie-Ève Brisson, Jeffrey Dungen, Patrick Harrop, and Elody Sanchis for their contributions throughout the project.
The collective extends special thanks to Elena Beaulieu from the cultural valorization group Axelys for her support and assistance in the development of the project.
References
Svalina, A., Tomiša, M., Čačić, M., & Hajdek, K. (2022). Synthesis of current knowledge and research on the Design Thinking methodology. Tehnički glasnik, 16(4), 445-453.
Hong, C. K., Ou, Z. Y., & Mandel, L. (1987). Measurement of subpicosecond time intervals between two photons by interference. Physical review letters, 59(18), 2044.
Project partners
Banner image : Collectif Intrigo, De la science quantique à l’expérience artistique. Photo : Léa-Françoise Terrier.
