In December, apexart held a worldwide open call for 250-word proposals for exhibitions. Based on the idea of creating its own franchise apexart wanted to hear from the participants why the FRANCHISE should come to their town. To enhance the democratic notion of the project apexart invited over 250 jurors from the art world and beyond to judge this unusual experiment. In the end a proposal from Los Angeles by The League of Imaginary Scientists stood out against the 456 proposals from 65 countries that were submitted.

X, Y, Z, and U is an exhibition and series of discussions and workshops featuring the mapping projects of artists whose creative practices resemble field research and scientists who use DIY tactics and creative visualization to map scientific information. Through community-based activities and actions, X, Y, Z, and U asks: Where is science and how do we interact with it? Who maps information and who has access? Can anyone participate in genomic research?