Week 6: BioTech + Art

different color strawberry

Biotechnology is not a topic that I am familiar with. I do not think that artist and scientist will work together in the same laboratory before this class. Levy states that "art has the capacity to reveal some of the underlying assumptions built into our technology” (15, Levy), and it shows why artist and scientist work together can benefit a lot of studies. This week’s topic is attractive but controversy. It is no doubt that the combination of biotechnology and art brings a lot of benefits and possibilities. However, if people over used biotechnology, it will cause problem. One example is foods which are genetically modified, and they have different artistic colors and shapes. Nevertheless, people have many genetically modified foods will get strange illness, and it will hurt us.

Joe Davis

Alba Bunny

In the lecture, Joe Davis is the person who attracts me the most. He is the pioneer of connecting biotechnology and art, and he wanted to create an “info-gene” to translate human being genes into meaning. Joe Davis said “The most absurd things are connected in very absurd ways", and it leads to the appearance of many Bio-Art performance. 

Artists and scientists work together to do some organisms which not appear naturally. Alba Bunny is an example. Alba Bunny is created by Eduardo Kac, and it is inserted jellyfish’s fluorescent protein which makes it a green fluorescent bunny, and it is created with the work of artist and scientist. In Levy’s essay, he shows the different fluorescent protein projects, and it includes genetic engineering of plants and animals. 

Nowadays, the application of biotechnology and art in the area of medicine has improved our lives. One example is that the fluorescent protein can help find an anti-cancer gene. However, overusing biotechnology will cause some serious problems due to the mutation of species. 

 Work Cited:

Levy, Ellen K. Defining Life: Artists Challenge Conventional Classifications. Print.

Vesna, Victoria. Unit 6 Lecture BioTech+Art. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg#t=157

AbbyMediaRoots. "What is Genetically Modified Food?" Dec 16. 2009. Web. May 10. 2015. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAP6ZtfP9ZQ

Phil Mckenna. "Joe Davis: The mad scientist of MIT?" Mar 23. 2012. Web. May 10. 2015. http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/culturelab/2012/03/the-mad-scientist-of-mit.html

Biotechcellence. Web. 8 November 2013. http://www.biotechcellence.org/