the mit program in art, culture and technology (act), hosted within the department of architecture, was created in the summer of 2009 by the merger of the visual arts program (vap) and the center for advanced visual studies (cavs). the cavs, now renamed the act fellows program, was founded in 1968 with györgy kepes as the director. the cavs had the goal of encouraging collaboration among artists, scientists, and engineers, and it served as a precursor to the mit media lab decades later. the successor act fellows program is still held in high regard as a research center for practicing artists.