Retrospective of Biological Art: From Steichen to Kac
A survey of biological art conducted until December 2001 features significant pieces from a range of artists. Among them are Edward Steichen's delphiniums from 1928, George Gessert's iris hybridizations initiated in 1982 and his 'Scatter' project starting in 1985, Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey's 'Sunbathers' from 2000, and Heath Bunting's 'SuperWeed 1.0' created in 1999. Additionally, Natalie Jeremijenko's 'OneTree' has been ongoing since 1998, while Alan Sonfist's 'Micro-organism' dates back to 1968. Noteworthy contributions also include Al Wunderlich's 'Living Paintings' (2001), Joe Davis's 'Microvenus' (1986/1990) and 'The Riddle of Life' (1993), Paul Perry's hybridoma (1997), Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle's sperm bank installation (2000), and Eduardo Kac's 'Genesis' (1999) and 'GFP Bunny' (2000). The survey encompasses genetic portraits and musical works by various creators as well.
Key facts
- Survey covers biological art up to December 2001.
- Edward Steichen created delphiniums using colchicine from 1928.
- George Gessert's 'Scatter' (1985) planted irises in wild areas, called 'genetic graffiti'.
- Heather Ackroyd and Dan Harvey's 'Sunbathers' (2000) uses genetically modified grass.
- Heath Bunting's 'SuperWeed 1.0' (1999) contains herbicide-resistant weed seeds.
- Natalie Jeremijenko's 'OneTree' (since 1998) cloned a walnut tree into 1,000 copies.
- Joe Davis's 'Microvenus' (1986/1990) inserted a runic symbol into E. coli.
- Eduardo Kac's 'GFP Bunny' (Alba, 2000) was a transgenic rabbit; INRA refused its release.
Entities
Artists
- Edward Steichen
- George Gessert
- Heather Ackroyd
- Dan Harvey
- Heath Bunting
- Natalie Jeremijenko
- Alan Sonfist
- David Kremers
- Al Wunderlich
- Joe Davis
- Katie Egan
- Paul Perry
- Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle
- Oron Catts
- Ionat Zurr
- Guy Ben-Ary
- Philip Gamblen
- Shannon Howie
- Matt Richards
- Ian Sweetman
- Adam Zaretsky
- Brandon Ballangée
- Eduardo Kac
- Peter Gena
- Dennis Ashbaugh
- Kevin Clarke
- Steve Miller
- Xavier Moehr
- Gary Schneider
- Dui Seid
- John Dunn
- Mary Anne Clark
- Louis-Marie Houdebine
- Max Delbrück
- George W. Beadle
Institutions
- MIT
- C.A.V.S.
- Alexander Rich Laboratory
- INRA
- Exploratorium
- CTEC
- Perth Science Museum
- Rich Laboratories
- SymbioticA
- Tissue Culture and Art Project
- Burpee
- Leonardo
- ISAST
- geneart.org
- artpress.com
Locations
- USA
- United States
- San Francisco
- California
- Perth
- Australia
- Jouy-en-Josas
- France
- Netherlands
- London
- Spain
- Guatemala
- Avignon
Sources
- artpress —