Event #1: Kathy High Manipulating Art and Living Systems Lecture

I attended the lecture by Kathy High, an extraordinary artist and curator, titled Manipulating Art and Living Systems.  Her work is largely influenced by biology and transgenics (the transfer of genes from one organism to another). As an artist her work is extremely relevant to our class topics and her lecture really allowed the concept of art and science to come alive for me, in a way very different from the ideas presented about the “Two Cultures”.

Semi Living Worry Dolls made of living cells once
used for studies 

She began the lecture by discussing artists and scientists that have influenced her work, many of which highlighted the collaboration of science, art, and mathematics. One of these influential individuals is the artist and scientist Koen Vanmechelen who is crossbreeding chicken species in order to go backwards to the ancestor of all chickens. His scientific work is displayed in an art gallery in the form of live chickens.  Another influential project for High is the Semi Living Worry Dolls in which dolls were created and displayed with living cells that would otherwise be discarded after research. In both cases biology is being used to create and inform art.

Kathy High and a transgenic rat

Kathy High’s own projects further demonstrated collaboration of the two cultures. A current project she is working on was inspired by transgenic research rats that she believed were rather unhappy in their environment. After researching the matter, she found evidence that rats have an ultrasonic giggle when tickled, and she decided to create an ultrasonic symphony of rat giggles, primarily for the purpose of rats but that can also be downgraded for human ears. This work required collaboration with composers, ultrasonic specialists, and biologists.

Kathy High working with the blood samples 

She also blends the worlds of art and science through her Blood Wars project in which she creates a beautiful aesthetic moving picture by taking samples of WBC from various volunteers and having their blood compete under an incubated microscope. It was mesmerizing and beautiful to watch, almost allowing me to forget about the large scientific basis of this artwork. Altogether this was an extremely enlightening experience that allowed me to hear first hand how easily the art and science worlds are able to collide in practice. 

Me and two of Professor Vesna's students,
one of whom introduced Kathy High at the beginning 
of the lecture 
(Proof of my attendance)