As artists enter into laboratories and also collaborate with biologists, a lot of interesting pieces have been fabricated. One particular project that struck out to me was Jason Davis' audio microscope that transforms light information into sounds and allows you to hear living cells. The idea itself is deeply interdisciplinary that I could see it exhibited in both a science and an art museum, especially in an educational setting for the latter option.
Biotech art like this validates life as an expressive medium, as it gives a deeper perspective into organisms on the cellular level. Davis' other project on inserting a map of the milky way into the ear of a transgenic mouse with DNA base pairs exposes how intricate but modifiable genetic material is. Inherently, using transgenics or selective breeding as an artistic technique can bring out the scientific beauty that is embedded within life. These type of artistic endeavors have the potential to inspire our future scientific breakthroughs. It provokes discussion with a highly controversial topic such as transgenics. However, I don't believe in projects that are more for the shock value, like Stelarc's third ear on his arm.
Even though he believes the use of science and technology could overcome human limitations, a third ear attached to one's arm is a terrible way of expressing that idea. The ear serves almost no bodily purpose, as it's mostly to shock his audience. One's poetic license with biotechnology should be limited to the quality of his or her execution. In this case, it's a very poor implementation of showing the value in body modifications. Overall, these artists working with biotechnology is both beneficial towards the art and science community and restrictions should be set if their projects have a high risk of placing physical or emotional harms to its participants.
Sources
"5 bioart pt1 1280x720". Youtube, uploaded by uconlineprogram, 18 Apr. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg.
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| Joe Davis' audio microscope (geneticsandculture.com) |
Biotech art like this validates life as an expressive medium, as it gives a deeper perspective into organisms on the cellular level. Davis' other project on inserting a map of the milky way into the ear of a transgenic mouse with DNA base pairs exposes how intricate but modifiable genetic material is. Inherently, using transgenics or selective breeding as an artistic technique can bring out the scientific beauty that is embedded within life. These type of artistic endeavors have the potential to inspire our future scientific breakthroughs. It provokes discussion with a highly controversial topic such as transgenics. However, I don't believe in projects that are more for the shock value, like Stelarc's third ear on his arm.
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| Sterlarc exhibiting his surgical third ear (sterlarc.org) |
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| Original model constructed with biocompatible material (CNN) |
Even though he believes the use of science and technology could overcome human limitations, a third ear attached to one's arm is a terrible way of expressing that idea. The ear serves almost no bodily purpose, as it's mostly to shock his audience. One's poetic license with biotechnology should be limited to the quality of his or her execution. In this case, it's a very poor implementation of showing the value in body modifications. Overall, these artists working with biotechnology is both beneficial towards the art and science community and restrictions should be set if their projects have a high risk of placing physical or emotional harms to its participants.
Sources
"5 bioart pt1 1280x720". Youtube, uploaded by uconlineprogram, 18 Apr. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg.
"5 BioArt pt4". Youtube, uploaded by uconlineprogram, 17 Mar. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qSc72u9KhI.
Davis, Joe and Katie Egan. Audio Microscope. Genetics and Culture, www.geneticsandculture.com/genetics_culture/pages_genetics_culture/gc_w03/davis_audio_scope.htm. Accessed 14 May 2017.
McCafferty, Georgia, "The man with an ear on his arm." CNN, 13 Aug. 2015, CNN, www.cnn.com/2015/08/13/arts/stelarc-ear-arm-art. Accessed 14 May 2017.
Sterlarc. Ear on Arm: Engineering Internet Organ. Sterlarc, www.stelarc.org/?catID=20242. Accessed 14 May 2017.
Booker, Chloe. "This Artist Grew an Ear on His Arm and Then Connected It to the Internet." The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 Aug. 2015, www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/performance-artist-stelarc-grows-an-ear-on-his-arm-and-connects-it-to-the-internet-20150814-giz695.html. Accessed 14 May 2017.
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