On May 24th I had the pleasure of viewing Central Saint Martins Degree Show 2016, Show 1, which presented works across courses including MA Art & Science, MRes Art: Theory & Philosophy, and BA & MA Fine Art, amongst others. 

Of the many and varied concepts explored, ideas and themes in and of nature were especially prominent this year. Standout graduates and postgraduates of the Class of 2016 included:

• Sarah Craske - a British artist working at the intersection of Art, Science and Technology whose research interests coverage in Biological Hermeneutics. Craske presents her research across "writing, installations, performance or sculpture using a range of media including archival material, bacteria, fungi, DNA, resins and collected specimens". Craske's MA exhibit, titled 'Metamorphoses in Art & Science' asks "Can we impregnate pages of the book [a 17th century copy of Ovid's Metamorphoses] with microbiological growth media to produce a living map of its microbiological history?".
• Lucy Crowder - An MA Art & Science 2016 graduate, Crowder has been "exploring the processes involved in the formation of ice; creating drawings and installations documenting the ephemeral nature of water as it changes states between a liquid and a solid". Having undertaken residencies in Greenland and Scandinavia, Crowder's exhibit examined the "possibilities and effects of shorter winters and receding ice sheets, to create work reflecting on the nature of the changing climate in the North". 
• Mellissa Fisher - Working at the interface of art and microbiology, MA Art & Science graduate Fisher's interests "lie in the interrelationships between illustration, sculpture and living organisms", and in particular the "connections with nature and the self, posing questions to an audience regarding their relationship with their bodies as well as their link to nature". One of Fisher's works that has recently gained media attention involved her "creating bacterial sculptures of her own body", which "represent the idea that our bodies are an ecosystem, using the body as a landscape for growing different organisms". 
• Emese Wu - BA Fine Art graduate Wu presented an exceptionally powerful exhibition piece that explored the relationship of life and death, and the subtle interplay between the two. Viewers were left wondering if her tantalising exhibit was a living or lifeless, was it alive or dead, a performance piece, or sculpture? Highly sophisticated and original work, Wu is one to watch.

"Since its inception in 2011 this pioneering course [MA Art & Science] the first of its kind, has provided a unique global platform for students across a wide range of fields, on which they extend and contribute to the expanding interdisciplinary branch of knowledge - Art and Science. Responding to this fast emerging territory for collaborative practice which redefines creativity across disciplines, UNFOLDING REALITIES practitioners from fine art, design, photography, neuroscience, art history, mathematics, choreography and architecture have been inspired by their individual connections and observations of the world and the challenge of interrogating this beyond disciplinary boundaries." Central Saint Martins, April 2016.

Find out more about MA Art & Science at: http://www.artsciencecsm.com

On May 12th 2016 I had the pleasure of participating in BioSalon II, which was held in Futuro House at Central Saint Martins, London. Curated by Professor in Design for Sustainable Futures and Director of the Design & Living Systems Lab, UAL, Carole Collet, the peer-gathering explored how the intersection of design and biological fabrication can open up to new ways of 'making' and crafting in the future.

​Amongst those engaged in BioSalon's thought provoking conversations were bio artist, curator and lecturer, Heather Barnett; co-founder of Bento Lab, Phillipp Boeing; co-director of the BiotA Lab, Bartlett School of Architecture, Richard Beckett; and history and theory tutor at the Urban Morphogenesis Lab, UCL Visiting Lecturer, Manos Zaroukas.

On April 18th 2016 scientists, designers, and artists working across the biodesign disciplines gathered at the Darwin Building at the Royal College of Art for fifth in the BioChanges series of talks and panel discussions. Themed of ‘Superorganisms’, the event explored questions including:

• How are microscopic pattern formation, synthetic biological networks, biomimetic architecture and global networks related?
• What can we learn from superorganisms, like fungi, swarm insects and microbiomes, about designing for resilience? 
• How do these systems nurture both themselves and future generations, and how can they be affected by human design and biological engineering?

The speakers were Artist, PhD Quantum Physicist and Senior Tutor in Information Experience Design at the Royal College of Art, Dr. Libby Heaney; Reader in Gene Network Engineering at Imperial College, Dr. Mark Isalan; Senior Lecturer in Synthetic Biology and Synthetic Genome Engineering at Imperial College, Dr. Tom Ellis; Artist and Researcher into Biological Systems, and Course Lecturer on the Masters in Art and Science at Central Saint Martins, Heather Barnett; and myself.

Dr. Libby Heaney kicked off the presentations with a selection of her biologically-inspired participatory installation experiments and artworks. Dr. Mark Isalan followed, introducing some of his research group’s latest experiments in gene network engineering. Next up, I presented a handful of my research findings at the intersection of ecosystem resilience to extreme hazards, architecture and urban design. Penultimate speaker Dr. Tom Ellis gave a compelling talk on some of his research group’s investigations in synthetic gene engineering (image above), positing the potential for future materials. Heather Barnett then walked the audience through several of her recent bioart projects, including collaborative works exploring the behaviours and potentialities of species including slime mould.
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Following a panel discussion and audience Q&A, all gathered participated in a live experiment, which designed by Heather Barnett, mimicked the behaviour of microorganisms. The evening drew to a close with drinks at the RCafe, and an opportunity for those gathered to pitch their ideas for art-science collaborations. 

Well done to BioChanges #5 organisers, including RCA biodesign researchers Victoria Geaney and Amanda Olesen, for having put together such an inspired and flawlessly produced event! 


Find out more about BioChanges are the link below:
http://www.biochanges.com/

Inspired by the live stream of NOAA and partners deepwater exploration of the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument (MTMNM) and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), on April 26th I took a trip to Zoological Society of London’s aquarium. Amongst other inspiring species, the ZSL collection includes bioluminescent Moon Jellyfish (above), and Upside-down Jellyfish (below).