The visual cues and sensors bees use to help them fly safely are being used by a Queensland researcher in his work on the development of pilotless aircraft.
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A Brisbane art gallery is offering a public insight into how bees are influencing aircraft artificial intelligence, and into their quirky communication techniques and the complex ecosystem within hives.
The Ninth Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT9), which is presented every three years, can be seen at Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art until April 28.
Bee One Third Neighbourhood Honey founder Jack Stone, who specialises in public bee displays, and New Zealand photographer Anne Noble created an exhibition featuring a public beehive.
"The focus is around the artwork itself and the messages it is trying to raise — the beauty of the bee but also the imminent death of this incredibly precise creature," Mr Stone said.
"The outside details bees up close and personal, but open it up and you're faced with a confronting, living organism that is the beehive.
"The really beautiful and poignant artworks around the beehive showcase the different stages of a bee's life."
The insects' vision-based guidance system has influenced the work of Professor Srini Srinivasan, attached to the Queensland Brain Institute and researching the development of pilotless aircraft.
"How bees fly, navigate, land smoothly and avoid any objects is what we want to put into aircraft to guide them in similar ways," Professor Srinivasan said.
"Traditional aircraft rely on beacons and automatic systems, but all this not necessary: animals use their sensors to navigate on their own.
"I came across this almost by accident, but I started looking at how bees navigate safely down narrow corridors without bumping into things.
"I experimented with what cues they use — if the walls either side are moving at the same speed then the bee is flying down the middle, but if the walls are moving at different speeds then the bee is closer to one, so it is balancing the optic flow."
Professor Srinivasan said he and his team had been able to get an aircraft to take off, perform aerobatic manoeuvres and land using its own sensors and visual information.
QAGOMA Asian and Pacific art manager Zara Stanhope said the Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art had been presented in Australia since 1993.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see a wealth of over 400 artworks by more than 80 artists that span across two buildings," she said.
"It is still the only event that brings contemporary art together from the entire Asia Pacific region.
"It is one that is very human as well, with artists responding to the world around us today, so it might spark some ideas and curiosity in visitors' minds."
Ms Stanhope said among the exhibition highlights were Japanese artist Yuko Mohri’s ready-made instruments, which create music throughout GOMA’s River Lounge and extend onto the veranda.
The creation from Indian artist Shilpa Gupta features letters, both past and present, from those who spent time in prison and presents each one by putting a stake through them.
The Women’s Wealth exhibition showcases the textiles, pottery and accessories by female artists from Bougainville in Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Australia.
APT9 can be seen at the Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art until April 28. A full list of exhibitions and events can be found here.
