WEEK 6 - BioTech + Art

Week 6 - BioTech + Art

This week’s lesson shocked me in the sense that I had not considered manipulating genes and nature or biotechnology, in general, as forms of art. “Biotechnology is the application of science to living organisms” (University of California Television). Using life as a medium for art is interesting, and I believe it should be used to an extent. Life itself is an art form, I believe, and using the biological aspect of it such as through genes and cellular levels, can help us learn more about our bodies. Through exploring gene manipulation, reorganizing cells, etc., there is a possibility that it can lead to great discoveries over the body and maybe learn how to cure certain illnesses and conditions. Overall, biotechnology is “challenging accepted classifications of life” and going beyond the “natural” (Levy).

GFP Bunny by Eduardo Kac from ekac.org. 

The work of Eduardo Kac and his “GFP Bunny” is especially interesting in regards to its creation and the ethics behind it. Kac inserted the genes of a fluorescent jellyfish into an albino bunny to make it glow and refers to it as transgenic art—art that transfers genes to living organisms (Vesna). Although I find this fascinating, it also raises concern as to whether art and science is sufficient reasoning for putting animals through these procedures. A question I also posed was, when does it reach a point where we have surpassed what is "natural" and should stop? Is making a bunny glow going too far? Should we leave nature and life as is? More specifically, arguments arise about whether biotech should even be used for art. “Frances Stracey poses the question whether biotechnology should even be made available outside the realm of research and industry” (Vaage). At the end of the day, ethics is open to different interpretations and is based on what people believe in. Therefore, the question of ethics in biotech and art may never be strictly answered since there is too much ambiguity.  

                             Video: Mary Ward discusses the ethics behind BioTech and BioArt.

When learning about biotech and art, it reminded me of a genetic experiment I learned about in my genetics class—Dolly the Sheep. Dolly was a sheep “cloned from a cell taken from the mammary gland” and an egg cell taken from two sheep (“The Life of Dolly”). This experiment, although not directly created in relation to art, connects well with the question of ethics in relation to biotech and art. How far can artists and individuals go with animal testing and gene manipulation before it is considered taboo? Dolly might be different because she was not explicitly used but created, yet it may be considered controversial if we can use living organisms in a way that is not normal. I believe there needs to be limits to how far an artist can go in terms of using living organisms, but who gets to determine these limits is another question that requires further discussion.

Dolly the Sheep in National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. 

Resources:

Levy , Ellen K. “Defining Life: Artists Challenge Conventional Classifications.” 2011.

“The Life of Dolly.” Dolly the Sheep, https://dolly.roslin.ed.ac.uk/facts/the-life-of-dolly/index.html. 

University of California Television, director. Animal Biotechnology , YouTube, 2008, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCIvAuwaf-o&ab_channel=UniversityofCaliforniaTelevision%28UCTV%29. Accessed 2022.

Vaage, Nora S. “What Ethics for Bioart?” NanoEthics, vol. 10, no. 1, 2016, pp. 87–104., https://doi.org/10.1007/s11569-016-0253-6.

Vesna, Victoria, director. Biotechnology and Art. Lecture Part 1, UC Online, 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg&ab_channel=UCOnline. Accessed 2022.

Images/Videos:

“Bioethics and Bioart: Inspiring Colorful Conversations about the Grey Area | Mary Ward | TEDxUNC.” YouTube, TedxTalks, 2018, Bioethics and Bioart: Inspiring Colorful Conversations about the Grey Area | Mary Ward | TEDxUNC. Accessed 2022.

Kac, Eduardo. “GFP Bunny.” GFP Bunny, 2000, http://www.ekac.org/gfpbunny.html#gfpbunnyanchor.

Ugc. “Remains of Dolly the Sheep.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 12 Oct. 2017, https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/remains-of-dolly-the-sheep.